Pinedale area fires, Pinedale Online

Fire Update
Monday, July 16, 2001
FIRE DANGER is: VERY HIGH
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Fires At a Glance

Daily thunder and lightning storms are starting numerous small lightning fires across the Bridger-Teton National Forest. At present, these fires are small and Forest Service firefighters are getting on them quickly. At least seven new fires were being attended to by firefighters. In addition, the Fisherman Creek, Buck Creek and Rim fires are still being watched closely, even though they are being called controlled.
Forest Service personnel are still finding numerous burning campfires being left unattended by careless campers. Please don't build a fire unless you have to. If you do build one, don't leave it unattended and make sure it is completely out before you leave it.
New small fires are located on the Big Piney and Pinedale Ranger Districts near Scab Creek trailhead, Big Sandy Campground and Sacajawea campground. These fires are all fairly small (1/8 - 4 acres) and the campgrounds and trails are still open near them.
The Forest Service appreciates the prompt calls by citizens concerning new sightings of smoke columns.
For more information about fires on the Bridger-Teton National Forest, see their fire web site: www.tetonfires.com
Firewood permits are still being issued from the Forest Service. No campfire restrictions are in effect yet.
Pinedale Online will be updating this fire information as often as needed.

Bridger-Teton National Forest latest Press Releases:
July 14, 2001 (BTNF) Lightning Show Sparks More Fires on the BTNF
July 13, 2001 (BTNF) New Fires Ignite as Incident Management Teams Depart BTNF

A thunderstorm Saturday night during Rendezvous Days created a spectacular sunset over the Museum of the Mountain Man.

Where to get more information:

For More Info on the Web

Teton Fires
Bridger-Teton National Forest
National Interagency Fire Center NIFC Wildland Fire Map

Bridger-Teton Fire Info
Staffed Phone: 307-739-5500
8:00 am-4:30 pm
Jay Anderson, Public Affairs
307-739-5542

Pinedale Ranger District
29 CR-154, Pinedale
307-367-4326

Big Piney Ranger District
315 S. Front, Big Piney
307-276-3375

Where to report fires:
Sublette County Sheriff's Office
911 or 307-367-4378
Pinedale Ranger District
307-367-4326
Big Piney Ranger District
307-276-3375
BTNF Supervisor's Office (Jackson)
307-739-5500
Teton Fire Dispatch
(Grand Teton Park in Moose)
307-739-3630
307-739-3300

Callers are reminded that if they are using a cell phone, they may not get a local office when they dial 911. The best place to call for area fires is either the local Sheriff's office or the Bridger-Teton Fire Office. Be prepared to give a location of the smoke, your name, where you are calling from, and how they can get ahold of you again for more information if needed.

Earlier Updates:
Monday, July 9 update
Sunday, July 8 update
Saturday, July 7 update
Friday July 6, 2001 9 pm update
Friday, July 6, 2001 8 am update
Thursday, July 5, 2001

Monday, July 16, 2001

The fire situation has calmed somewhat, relatively speaking. At least enough to make local officials feel comfortable to release most of the Hot Shot crews that were here, with the exception of a couple of Type II hand crews from Helena. The fire base camp in Bondurant at the Hoback Guard Station is deserted now. Local firefighters are taking the opportunity to get a bit of rest for what they know is inevitably coming, more fires. Forest Service officials make daily aerial patrol sweeps and are picking up new lightning-caused small fires that are being immediately jumped on by helicopters and firefighting crews.

The Fisherman Creek fire is being called controlled. Mop up crews continue to work on this one, and will throughout the summer, until the snow calls it officially out. It is not spotting and is looking good for now. The Buck Creek fire is also being called controlled, but they are watching this one a little more closely because of the potential for spotting. They will continue to monitor these fires with heat-sensing infared sensors to detect any hidden hot spots that might flare up should conditions dry out and winds pick up. Hoback Ranches homeowners are breathing a sigh of relief now and working on creating defensible spaces around their homes, if needed. For more information about Hoback Ranches, visit their web site at: www.hobackranches.com.

The Greys River Complex consists of 5 separate fires being managed together. Main firefighting efforts are focusing on two fires:
Deer Creek fire, 165 acres, 100% contained
Fawn Creek fire, 45 acres, 100% contained

New Fires
The Pinedale and Big Piney areas have at least 4 new fires as of today. But even as we write this, we hear on the scanner that firefighters are out checking on reports of several new possible smokes. As of this morning, the new fire status was:

Temple fire: About one mile east of Big Sandy Campground. 1/10 acre in size. Status is contained and controlled, but not completely out. Trailhead, trails and campground are still open.

Ker fire: At the top of Cliff Creek in the upper Hoback drainage. Size: 1/8 acre. This fire showed up on Saturday and is now contained, controlled and out.

Harmon fire: Located approximately 2 miles within the Bridger Wilderness about 1/2 mile north of Toboggan Lake near the Scab Creek trailhead and BLM campground. Size is approximately 4 acres and it is currently contained and controlled. Campground, trailhead and trails are open.

Sacajawea fire: Located about 25 miles west and slightly north of Big Piney near the Sacajawea campground close to the BTNF forest boundary. Size: 5 acres. Campground and trails are still open.

See the Teton Fires web site for information about other fires on the Bridger-Teton National Forest, www.tetonfires.com.

July 16, 2001 BTNF Fire Map

Click for larger image

Fisherman Creek
BTNF Fire Map 7/10/01

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Buck Creek
BTNF Fire Map 7/16/01

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Thank You Local Businesses and Firefighters!
Fire season has only just begun. Over the last several weeks we've had many firefighting crews come into town to help us fight the fires. These crews need to be fed, housed and supplied on very short notice. We wanted to say special 'thank yous' to some the local businesses in the community who have been of tremendous support to the firefighting efforts. Lakeside Lodge, Stockman's, Wrangler Cafe, Fat Daddy's and the Patio Grill all helped with supplying food for hungry firefighting crews, sometimes feeding 80 at a time and staying open late to make sure the firefighters who came in late from the fires still got a good warm meal. We know there are others we are leaving out, but these are some of the folks who we heard name mentioned in particular during this latest round of fires.

The local Sublette County Sheriff's office and Emergency Management team have put in many hours helping with the coordination of the firefighting efforts. Our local Forest Service employees have also put in countless hours of their time on firefighting duties. These folks are the ones who do the initial attack and fire coordination until the time the fires take off and specialized fire crews are called in to take over. Some of these folks have been working 2 weeks straight with sometimes as little as 4 hours of sleep at night and are finally getting a couple of much needed days off to rest. Next time you see these folks in the grocery store (and next winter) be sure to thank them for all their hard efforts to help protect the area homes that have been threatened by the fires and the forest we all enjoy so much here.

We also wanted to mention the wonderful folks up at the Hoback Ranches area. They've been through some pretty scary days and have been absolutely wonderful. Anyone interested in learning more about this beautiful area can visit their web site at: www.hobackranches.com.

FIRE DANGER IS VERY HIGH

Press Releases:
July 14, 2001 (BTNF) Lightning Show Sparks More Fires on the BTNF
July 13, 2001 (BTNF) New Fires Ignite as Incident Management Teams Depart BTNF
July 9, 2001 (BTNF) Greys River Complex Fire Fact Sheet
July 8, 2001 (BTNF) Fire Crews Released as Teams get a grip on Complex Fires
July 8, 2001 (BTNF) Greys River Complex Fire Fact Sheet
July 7, 2001 (BTNF) Positive Outlook on BTNF Fisherman Complex Fires
July 7, 2001 (BTNF) Greys River Complex Fire Fact Sheet
July 7, 2001 8:00 am (BTNF) National Teams Arrive on BTNF Fires
July 6, 2001 8:00 am (BTNF) National Teams Called in to Manage BTNF Forest Fires
July 5, 2001 3:00 pm (BTNF) Thirteen Fires Burning on Bridger-Teton National Forest
July 5, 2001 8:00 am (BTNF) Eleven Fires Burning on Bridger-Teton National Forest

Anyone with concerns about fires can contact the Sublette County Sheriff's office at 307-367-4376, or the Pinedale Ranger District, 307-367-4326. Hikers in the wilderness who may have cell phones and can get a signal out can call 911 and ask to be routed to the Sublette County Sheriff's office if they have concerns.

Last Year's Fires: 2000 Fire pages
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Pinedale Online fire update. Information provided by the Pinedale Ranger District, US Forest Service Bridger-Teton National Forest. Copyright 2001. Please contact support@pinedaleonline.com for more information or permission to reprint pictures or content.