Cooler weather slows growth on Ridge Fire
A helicopter loads up with water from the Hungry Horse Reservoir to aid in suppressing growth on the west side of Ridge Fire on Sunday, Aug. 6, 2023. (InciWeb photo)
Growth slowed on a wildfire near Martin City over the weekend with cooler, humid weather moving over the region.
The Ridge Fire along the Hungry Horse Reservoir was at 2,584 acres Sunday, an increase of 350 acres from the last estimate.
On Saturday, helicopters doused the west flank with bucket drops, while hand crews worked on a fuel break. Heavy equipment continued work on a fuel break north of the junction of Desert Mountain Road and the East Side Road.
Crews on Sunday planed to establish a fuel break near Emery Bay Campground.
East Side Road remained closed to all public traffic east of the junction of Desert Mountain Road and FS Road 38. West Side South Fork Road was closed at mile 15 near the Lid Creek Campground.
A pre-evacuation notice was in place for homes along SF Abbot Creek.
Also on the Flathead Forest, the Tin Soldier Complex west of Swan Lake was estimated at 2,368 acres Sunday and remains 0% contained.
South of Trego, the East Fork Fire showed growth to the east and had moved onto the Tally Lake Ranger District. It was 850 acres and 6% contained.
In the Mission Valley, fire behavior was expected to moderate Sunday on the Niarada Fire west of Elmo following significant growth Friday into Saturday. The latest size estimate put the fire at 17,000 acres.
Light precipitation Saturday helped moisten grassy fuels, but fire mangers said it wasn’t enough to be considered a “wetting rain” with heavy fuels near the fire’s southeastern flank continuing to torch Saturday. Scooper planes supported ground crews as the fire moved into grass west of White Earth Creek.
The Lake County Sheriff placed several residences in evacuation status Friday afternoon, while other residences in Elmo were advised to be ready to evacuate.
A mandatory evacuation remained in place from the top of the pass on Brown’s Meadow Road South to Montana 28.
Saturday's light rain also helped slow growth on the Big Knife Fire east of Arlee. It was sized at 4,864 acres as of the latest estimation.
Meteorologists forecast chances of thunderstorms and precipitation Sunday, with a slight drying trend into next week.