Firefighters are so far holding the line on the Pack Trail Fire, despite red flag conditions created by high wind, heat and low humidity that are expected to continue through the weekend.
The fire grew only a little in the Trout and Buckskin Creek drainages Thursday, according to the U.S. Forest Service’s Bridger-Teton National Forest update, and is now at 19,652 acres. The nearby Fish Creek Fire also stayed largely in place, with minor activity on its north side that was quickly quenched by ground and air resources. It remains at 25,443 acres.
The danger, however, is far from past, and firefighters are working around the clock to advance containment measures, even as weather forecasts are predicting a new bout of red flag conditions.
Those are “expected to last through 9 o’clock Saturday night,” Pack Trail and Fish Creek Fire Public Information Officer Jim Bartlett told Cowboy State Daily. “The Teton Interagency Fire Center has also elevated the fire danger rating yesterday to very high, in anticipation of that event.”
Wind gusts could exceed 50 mph. That, combined with low humidity and unseasonably warm temperatures, could lead to erratic fire behavior and has the entire team of now 427 personnel on high alert.
Complex Incident Management Team In Place
A complex incident management team took charge of the Pack Trail and Fish Creek Fire on Thursday, adding about 300 people to the firefighting effort, for a total of 427 engaged in fighting the two fires.
Fixed-wing assets are ordered daily, as needed. Ground equipment already on scene includes 14 engines, four helicopters, two water tenders, six feller bunchers, four skidders, two excavators and a dozer.
“Additional (ground) resources have continued to arrive,” Bartlett added. “And more are expected to arrive today.”
Those resources include personnel and equipment. The continued focus for Friday is building out more structure protection and widening fuel break lines to keep both the Fish Creek and Pack Trail fires contained.
“Yesterday, they were pushing up through the (Highway) 26 corridor and they were in the Pinnacle residence areas up towards Brooks Lake,” Bartlett said. “They’ve been spinning out all of their structure protection hose lays and taking advantage of the fuel breaks that were installed because of the previous (Fish Creek) fire.”
Brooks Lake Lodge will get its structure protection hoses back Friday, Bartlett said.
He credited the “first-class” fuel management that happened during the Fish Creek fire with giving firefighters a huge boost on fighting the Pack Trail fire.
The Lava Mountain and Purdy burn scars are also helping with containment. Hot shot crews have been working to connect the Lava Mountain and the Purdy fire burn scars, widening containment lines in the area.
Pack Trail, Elk Fire Are No. 1 Priorities
The Elk Fire in northeast Wyoming west of Sheridan and the Pack Trail fire west of Dubois are the top priorities right now in a multi-state region known as the Great Basin, Bartlett said.
“That means if we put in a resource order, if those resources are available, those orders will get filled,” he said. “And then it’s just a question of what’s the travel time, where are they coming from?”
The Great Basin covers Wyoming, Nevada and parts of Utah and Idaho.
Fire activity in other areas of the country, meanwhile, have ramped down as of the end of September.
“A lot of things have been freed up,” Bartlett said.
That should put even more resources in the hands of firefighters so they can protect structures along Highway 26 and keep the Pack Trail fire in its place.
The firefighters have planned a meeting at 6 p.m. Friday to discuss the fire in the Canteen Building at the National Museum of Military Vehicles, 6419 US 26 in Dubois. The meeting will also be live-streamed on the Bridger-Teton’s Facebook page.
“We are urging everyone who is going up Highway 26 yo use caution,” Bartlett said. “There’s a lot of additional fire traffic on the road.”
There’s also a rapidly changing smoke footprint that’s changing with the wind that could change visibility along Highway 26 at a moment’s notice.
Wyoming Department of Transportation is monitoring the situation closely, Bartlett said.
Motorists can visit WYDOT’s Travel Information Service to check the status of Highway 26 prior to traveling.
An air quality alert has been issued for the area, and the Wyoming Department of Health has recommended that elderly, young children, and individuals with respiratory problems minimize outdoor activity and physical exertion at this time.
Evacuation orders have been issued for Brooks Lake Lodge, Lava Mountain Lodge, the old KOA, and a couple of ranches in the area.
Areas along the Dunoir Road Corridor, the Ramshorn Ranch Road, Union Pass and the Wind River court are now in the “Ready” mode, which means be ready to evacuate on a moment’s notice.
The U.S. Forest Service has issued a closure area for the Bridger-Teton National Forest in the area surrounding the fire.
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
