Three wildfires burning 30K acres in Wyoming as hot, dry conditions persist

FROM WYOFILE:

Red flag warnings issued Tuesday in anticipation of dry lightning and strong wind gusts.

With hot temperatures and most of the state under drought conditions as August gets under way, three wildfires are burning across Wyoming. The Pleasant Valley, Leeds Creek and Clearwater fires are burning more than 30,000 acres.

Abundant fuels created by last summer’s rain coupled with a drier-than-normal July have led to recent fire-prone conditions, fire officials say, particularly on the east side of the state. Dry lightning and gusty winds have also contributed. Crews have experienced an uptick in fire activity in recent weeks, said Jerod DeLay, assistant state forester and fire management officer for Wyoming State Forestry Division.

“We’ve been pretty busy in the last couple of weeks,” DeLay said. “As [the fuels] are dried and curing out, we’re starting to see the effects of that in just some of the larger fires. There’s a lot more dry fuel out there available.”

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, only a small portion of the state, in the southwest, is not experiencing drought. Eastern Wyoming is experiencing severe to moderate drought, while the central part of the state is abnormally dry and northwestern Wyoming is in moderate drought.

Some 14 counties are now under fire restrictions, a number that will likely grow as conditions prone to burning persist.

Active fires

Burning on more than 28,000 acres as of Tuesday, the Pleasant Valley Fire just a mile north of Guernsey is by far Wyoming’s largest. The blaze ignited on July 30 and burned into the nearby Haystack Fire. As of Tuesday, the combined fire was 90% contained. Crews were able to hold the fire’s footprint on Monday despite windy conditions, and are managing it under a full suppression strategy.

Some 160 personnel and several pieces of equipment have been dispatched to the blaze, including four hand crews, three engines and three helicopters. While the Haystack Fire was caused by lightning, the cause of the Pleasant Valley blaze is under investigation, according to the Interagency All-risk Incident Information Management System, commonly known as InciWeb.

Lightning also ignited the Clearwater Fire, which is burning on 1,800 acres of rugged terrain near a busy highway corridor between Cody and Yellowstone National Park.

The blaze started on July 19 and is burning on steep, remote terrain that has made direct attack very difficult for fire crews, according to fire reports. It was 7% contained as of Tuesday. The fire, which is located near Highway 14 between Wapiti and Yellowstone, has burned parts of the highway corridor.

Some 110 personnel have responded to the blaze, and crews Tuesday were improving structure protection preparations and mopping up along the highway, according to InciWeb. That included proactively placing sprinklers around a ranch in the vicinity.

No evacuations have taken place, but the Shoshone National Forest closed Elk Fork, Wapiti and Clearwater campgrounds until further notice. The agency also closed sections of forest service road in the area as well as the Elk Fork Trail.

“The highway corridor remains very busy and public safety is of highest concern,” according to a fire update from InciWeb.

The Leeds Creek Fire is located on the Bridger-Teton National Forest 18 miles southwest of Dubois.

The fire was first reported Aug. 1, and the cause is unknown. As of Tuesday, the fire was burning on 1,230 acres with 13% containment. Nearly 100 people are staffing the fire team, which is utilizing a helicopter, eight smoke jumpers and multiple fire engines.

A pending area closure order is expected for public and firefighter safety, according to the Bridger-Teton National Forest.

Due to hot and gusty conditions predicted for this week, the agency expects to see more active fire. Smoke from the fire may be visible from the Continental Divide Trail, Dubois and Pinedale.

Precautions

Fire officials in March predicted an average-to-normal season. That is generally what has unfolded, DeLay said, with about 400 fires reported so far — which is close to the typical number of blazes at this time of the year. The acreage burned is likely higher than average, he said.

The Shoshone National Forest on July 31 implemented Stage 1 fire restrictions in its Wapiti, Clarks Fork and Greybull ranger districts. The restrictions prohibit burning a fire unless it’s in a permanent or concrete fire pit installed by the Forest Service at its developed recreation sites. The restrictions also prohibit smoking except in certain controlled circumstances.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department on Tuesday enacted a ban on open fires on all Game and Fish Commission-owned and administered lands within Fremont County. More than a dozen counties have also issued Stage 1 restrictions.

“As long as the dry conditions continue across Wyoming, the potential for human-caused fires, including catastrophic fires threatening Commission-owned and administered lands, is very high,” Game and Fish Habitat and Access Supervisor Brian Parker said in a press release.

Red flag warnings were in effect for much of Wyoming on Tuesday afternoon due to dry lightning and strong wind gusts. Relief could come later in the week as the chance of precipitation will increase over places like Casper, Sheridan and Torrington.

“Hopefully that will give the east side of the state, or at least the northeast quarter of the state, a little bit of a reprieve,” DeLay said. He encouraged residents to be mindful of their surroundings, check for fire restrictions and use caution and care when working or recreating outside.

Along with the blazes within Wyoming’s border, smoke from fires in Canada, Idaho and the Pacific Northwest has been infiltrating the skies above the state.

WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.

This story was posted on August 6, 2024.