MONTANA FIRES KEEP GROWING, NEW FIRE FORCES EVACUATIONS NEAR EVARO
Across the board, Montana
fires grew in drier weather Tuesday, but heavy incoming smoke from Idaho
fires helped keep fire activity close to the ground on some blazes.
Fires in Southcentral Montana
are getting more attention and resources as the fire season continues, with the Wicked Hicks Complex growing some 10,000 acres
from Tuesday morning and the Columbine Fire in Yellowstone National Park growing enough to force the park to again close the eastern entrance.
Meanwhile,
a new fire sprouted northwest of Missoula Tuesday, forcing
the immediate evacuation of some 20 homes near Evaro west of Highway 93 and north of Interstate 90. The Black Cat Fire started
just east of Frenchtown Pond and has so far burned 600 acres in steep, rocky terrain.
East of Missoula, the Sawmill
Complex near Rock Creek also saw some action Tuesday and grew to 27,250 acres. Fire officials are expecting more activity
in the next two days and so they ordered more evacuations along Rock Creek Road
Tuesday. About 77 homes and cabins, not all occupied, were evacuated by 8 a.m. Wednesday.
The Jocko Lakes Fire near
Seeley continues to be the nation's top priority fire, but the Chippy Creek Fire burning near Thompson Falls is on the rise for priority
as well. It is number two for priority and the largest fire in Montana
this season at 77,500 acres. Next on the priority list is the Columbine Fire in Yellowstone
National Park and then the Sawmill Complex, followed by the Wicked Hicks
Complex.
Priority fires are first in line for national resources, like firefighting crews, incident management teams
and air support.
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Ricardo E. Nuñez. All Rights Reserved.
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