Glacier fire at 11,172 acres
A map shows the reach of the 11,000-acre Howe Ridge Fire burning along Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park. (Inciweb)
The uncontained Howe Ridge Fire tearing through Glacier National Park was estimated at more than 11,100 acres Tuesday.
The storm system that brought cooler temperatures and rain to the park also carried 20 mph northeastern winds that fueled a southerly run toward Inside North Fork Road and the Howe Lake Trail.
“It moved quite a bit in the last two days,” Rocky Gilbert, operations chief for John Pierson’s Southwest Team 2, said in a fire update Tuesday. “We got some wind two nights ago. Fortunately we got rain yesterday morning on it, which slowed down some of that movement.”
Due to better visibility Monday, CL-215 “Super Scoopers” and helicopters provided water drops on the blaze. The Super Scoopers focused on the south flank of the fire, Gilbert said.
A Type 1 incident management team and a total of around 220 fire personnel armed with heavy ground equipment continued efforts to complete and hold containment lines on the southwestern flank and point protection around structures, including Lake McDonald Lodge and Apgar and Fish Creek campgrounds.
“We had crews working the inside road .. along with heavy equipment clipping some snags from the old Robert Fire and trying to just make a fuel break,” Gilbert said.
On the northeastern flank, north of Lake McDonald, firefighters planned to continue using pumps and hose lays to limit fire spread toward the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Helicopters were also being used for suppression efforts in this area.
The fire was logged at around 9 miles northeast of West Glacier as of Tuesday, burning primarily in heavy lodgepole regeneration from the 2003 Robert Fire and 2001 Moose Fire.
Evacuation orders remain in place for the Fish Creek Campground. Going-to-the-Sun Road is closed from the foot of Lake McDonald to Logan Pass on the west side. The scenic road remains open on the east side.
Multiple trail closures are associated with the fire.
An evacuation warning remained in effect for Apgar, the Grist Road, Quarter Circle Bridge Road and all areas accessed from Quarter Circle Bridge Road.
Reporter Mary Cloud Taylor can be reached at 758-4459 or mtaylor@dailyinterlake.com.