I see that according to Kootenai Dispatch WildCAD, there is a new large fire (estimated 500 acres) 7 miles east of Eureka in lower Graves Creek. It is about 20 miles due west of the North Fork Road at Whale Creek. A Type 2 Incident Management Team has been ordered. Rick Connell’s Western Montana IMT has been reserved, which means… Read more →
At the NFLA Business Meeting last evening, it was suggested that we publish a list of fire information sites. Here’s a list that we’ve put together. This list has also been published on the Fire Mitigation Committee page. If you have another information site that you use, please let us know via the contact page. An interagency fire information line… Read more →
In Northwest Montana we are still forecasted for a “normal” season, but with normal fire season in August, it should be busy. As Lynn probably mentioned at the NFLA Meeting Saturday, things are drying out quickly. I was amazed at how dry the fine fuels around our cabins have gotten in just the past week without watering. This reminds me… Read more →
The Fire Mitigation Committee met in May to plan its activities for the year, including its annual Firewise Day workshop. The workshop will be held in Sondreson Hall on Wednesday, July 19, 2017 from 9:30 a.m. to noon, preceding the Summer Interlocal. Our principal speaker this year will be Byron Bonney, who has been instrumental in working with landowners on… Read more →
The following information was provided by Allen Chrisman… Here is the June 1 National Outlook for Wildland Fire Potential. It is forecasting a slower than normal fire season for the Northern Rockies for June and July, moving to a “normal” fire season in August and September. That is the good news. Locally, the hot dry weather we have had recently makes things a… Read more →
The summary says… By mid-late July, the western fire season will begin to progress north into the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies. While a normal transition into fire season is expected in the lower elevations, a delayed entrance is possible in the higher elevations as both regions enter their fire seasons having seen abundant winter and spring precipitation and snowpack… Read more →
The Fire Mitigation Committee is planning for the North Fork’s 2017 Firewise Day, which probably will be held the morning of July 19, preceding the Summer Interlocal. Byron Bonney will be our featured speaker. He has been instrumental in working with landowners on hazardous fuels treatments in the Bitterroot. We expect him to tell us about the effects of those… Read more →
Andy Huntsberger, Fire Management Officer for the Forest Service, wrote with the following information… We plan on doing some Prescribed Fire implementation in the North Fork of the Flathead on 9/28 and 9/29/2016. Specifically Red Whale Units 7 (270 Acres) & Unit 8 (308 Acres) located directly west of Polebridge, MT. We plan on hand igniting the ridges and potentially utilizing Helicopter PSD ignition… Read more →
The NFLA’s Fire Mitigation Committee sponsored its annual Firewise workshop on July 13, 2016, preceding the Summer Interlocal meeting. About 45 people attended. Committee co-chair Allen Chrisman once again put together an outstanding program, with presentations from all of the federal, state and local agencies with wildfire responsibilities on the North Fork. Angela Mallon and Erik Warrington represented the DNRC…. Read more →
This year’s Firewire Day workshop will be held on Wednesday July 13, 2016 from 9:30 a.m. to noon at Sondreson Hall, immediately preceding the Summer Interlocal meeting. Our Firewise Day agenda includes the following items: A video by Jack Cohen, internationally known wildfire expert at the Fire Lab in Missoula. The video’s title is “Your Home Can Survive a Wildfire,” with advice about how… Read more →