Aggressive Red Canyon Fire Closes In On 100,000 Acres, Still 0% Containment

The Red Canyon Fire continues to surge in multiple directions about 11 miles east of Thermopolis as it closes in on 100,000 acres burned since it was touched off by a bolt of lightning Wednesday.

By Sunday evening, the fire had grown to nearly 92,000 acres and was spreading quickly, said Tammy Boyd, spokeswoman for the Sierra Front Nevada Team 5 firefighting group that arrived Saturday to manage firefighting efforts.

It won't be long before it crosses the 100,000-acre threshold, she said.

“This is really challenging, and it’s not the only fast-growing fire that’s burning right now,” she told Cowboy State Daily. “It’s in difficult terrain and there are numerous high-value resources (threatened) and some tricky weather.”

Those high-value resources include oil fields, a high-voltage power transmission line and numerous homes, ranches and other outbuildings.

Boyd said there are now more than 300 firefighters and other support personnel working the Red Canyon Fire, with many of those on the ground protecting homes and ranches.

So far, she knows of only one barn that’s been lost to the blaze, but that tally could definitely rise as firefighters get more of a handle on managing the fire.

“We have a lot of firefighters engaged in point protection right now,” Boyd said. “There’s some oil and gas infrastructure just south of the fire, but at this time there are no oil and gas losses reported.”

They’ll have more help for that, she said, because her Type 3 team is already scheduled to be bolstered by a “complex” firefighting group, which is an escalated level of response.

“It’s a bigger team than ours and is better able to handle the fire than ours,” she said. “That may be because of the size of the fire or the importance of high-value assets.”

In the meantime, the fire continues its aggressive advance, she said. For instance, during a 12-hour period Saturday, the fire swelled by 15,000 acres, which is “pretty substantial growth.”

On The Move

The fire also is making “active runs to the northwest, west, south, southwest and east,” the Sierra Front team reports. “The fire burned across the Buffalo Creek Road and into the Alkali Creek and West Kirby Creek drainages and is threatening the Jones Creek Road area.”

It’s crossed into Washakie County to the east and south into Fremont County.

In Fremont, some areas have been put on evacuation alert status, according to the county’s Emergency Management Department.

• The area of North Bridger Creek to Norwood Road and Middle Bridger Creek are on “ready” status, meaning people there should be ready to evacuate.

• Others are in “set” status, meaning an evacuation “go” order may be imminent. Those areas are from Geodicke Draw east to North Bridger Creek, along with North Bridger Creek.

Those are in addition to evacuations already in place in Hot Springs County.

• South of Buffalo Creek Road, east of Jones Creek Road and west of Rock Creek Road from the fire area to the Fremont County Line. That includes all of Kirby Creek, Lake Creek, Bridger Creek and the Pack Saddle areas.

• Also ordered to go are people along Kirby Creek Road between Red Hole and Buffalo Creek roads.

On The Ground

With the Red Canyon Fire expanding so quickly and actively, the main focus for firefighters so far is protecting people and property, Boyd said.

They also continue a steady stream of aerial attacks, with six helicopters dedicated to the fire, along with numerous other tankers that are making runs over the area as they also attack other fires in Wyoming.

In the meantime, her team’s personnel, along with the local Thermopolis Volunteer Fire Department and Hot Springs County Sheriff’s Office, are working around the clock to exhaustion.

“They’re working very hard on the line, and we appreciate all they’re doing,” she said about the hot, physical and demanding work of fighting a wildfire.

That can be made more difficult when firefighters come across property owners and others in the fire area trying to protect their homes and ranches. While she understands that instinct, it also can hamper the overall efforts to fight the fire.

Firefighters are protecting those assets already, she said, but are diverted from their work when they have to escort people not supposed to be there out of the area.

“We understand that, we really do,” Boyd said. “But our No. 1 priority has to be people’s lives. So, if people are there and that’s not coordinated, they have to pull people from the work assigned to escort people out.”

‘Prayers’

At Tom Anderson’s place, firefighters have set up equipment and a rallying spot. In fact, he jokes on his Facebook page that, “We should have had a branding, as this is more people and vehicles than when we brand.”

But the danger to his property and his neighbors is no joke. All around is blackened and scorched land, and he estimates that, “We probably lost lose to 500 acres of grass and brush so far.

“The prayers should go for the brave people fighting the fire and for my neighbors to the east that have lost so much more winter feed than we have,” he added. “Also, many miles of fences will have to be replaced, along with water lines, water tanks, corrals and buildings.”

Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com.