More than 520 firefighters assigned to Seeley-Swan blaze
A sign thanks firefighters working on the Colt Fire northwest of Seeley Lake on July 27, 2023. (InciWeb photo)
Firefighters on the Colt Fire near Seeley Lake hoped to take advantage of cooler weather Thursday in their efforts to build control lines around the state’s largest active wildfire.
The fire on the Lolo National Forest was estimated at nearly 5,000 acres Thursday morning, with 0% containment.
More than 520 firefighters were on the scene, including 13 engines and five helicopters.
Crews were working to douse spot fires on the east flank along the Colt/Uhler Road. Burning operations were conducted along the west side of Forest Road 646.
The south flank remained held up at the West Fork of the Clearwater River.
An evacuation order remained in place for Montana 83 between mile markers 31 and 25.5.
As many as 33 structures are threatened by the fire.
East of Arlee, the Big Knife Fire increased to 415 acres Thursday, with 0% containment.
More than 400 firefighters were assigned to the lightning-caused incident.
The fire is burning in rough terrain with heavy forest fuels.
On Tuesday, crews contained a 1-acre fire in Glacier National Park that cropped up along Harrison Lake in the Nyack area north of U.S. 2.
All of Northwest Montana moves to stage 1 fire restrictions on Saturday, which prohibits campfires and smoking outside of buildings or vehicles.
Gusty and erratic winds forecasted for Friday were expected to ramp up fire activity across the region. Temperatures over the next three days will slowly increase into the 90s.