Bulldozers, tankers attack new fire west of Charlo

A fire that started Friday around noon on the Flathead Indian Reservation 15 miles west of Charlo had grown to 3,028 acres by Saturday evening.

Dispatcher Jack Currie said there are 20 people fighting the Melton 1 Fire backed by bulldozers, skidders and four single-engine air tankers.

The fire is one of several large fires burning in Northwest Montana, including the 1,500-acre Marston Fire near Trego, the 2,500-acre Trail Creek Fire near the Spotted Bear River and the 13,000-acre Thompson Fire burning in Glacier National Park.

The Melton 1 Fire was ignited by lightning and quickly tore through dry grass and thick timber in the hills west of the Flathead River, according to Public Information Officer Devlin LaFrombois.

“It’s been hard to get resources out here with so many fires going on,” LaFrombois said. Crews have no containment on the fire, he said.

LaFrombois has submitted a request for a Type 2 fire management team, but won’t see more resources anytime soon since the fire is not headed for any homes or structures. The fire is off the road by several hundred yards, requiring crews to hike up the hills toward the blaze.

The fire is headed south through low grasslands and ridges west of Flathead River. The fire isn’t charging through acreage, LaFrombois said, but has created small spotting in the surrounding area.

“It’s not pushing too hard or covering ground too quick,” he said. “It just spots outward and kind of grows into itself.”

Six other fires started around the same time, including one near the Melton Fire that had covered 34 acres. All were caused by lightning, except a small camp-fire left behind at a Mission Dam camping space near St. Ignatius.

Another fire on the reservation, Melton 2, reached 100 acres but is fully contained.

There are also two half-acre fires as well as a quarter-acre fire in the Mission Mountains Wilderness Area that a Tennessee Cherokee National Forest Hot Shot crew is hiking toward. Helicopters have dropped water on the fire for several days, leaving the mop-up job for the ground crew.

The Melton 1 Fire is the only one causing concern at this time, LaFrombois said.

LaFrombois said crews are counting on lower temperatures and higher nighttime humidity in the next few days to slow the fire’s growth.

“We’ve been pretty lucky that there haven’t been any additional manmade fires in the area,” LaFrombois said.  

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.