Fire crews brace for wind today

Although there have been no new flare-ups in or around the Glacier Rim Fire north of Columbia Falls, fire officials are concerned about  windy conditions today.

The fire is now 45 percent contained, with water and sprinkler lines in place around the 85-acre fire, according to Jen Rankosky, the public information officer for the incident management team battling the fire.

However, today’s weather could test the 85 remaining personnel at the fire.

The National Weather Service issued a fire weather warning for today that calls for sustained winds of 15 to 35 miles per hour and gusts to 40 mph.

“That’s always a concern when you have a fire they’re trying to get a handle on and then winds come up,” said Rankosky.

Low humidity and a predicted high temperature of 96 degrees also could factor into firefighting efforts today.

About 30 firefighters and other resources were pulled off the fire on Thursday, and Rankosky said the three helicopters limited their flights.

The choppers are mainly being used to address any hotspots of unburned fuel in the fire’s interior that flare up.

Lincoln Chute, Flathead County Fire Service Area manager, said his big concern is the dryness of fuels.

“We’re typically at or higher than where we are during a bad fire season in late August or early September,” Chute said Thursday. “The conditions are so bad right now they’re going to get big extremely fast and we only have a little, short window to grab it. If it gets established it’s going to be extremely hard to put out.”

He added that he wouldn’t be surprised if the Weather Service upped its alert to a red flag warning today.

Reporter Samuel Wilson may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.