Granite Fire now 1050-Acres
Burning 2 miles north of Granite Hot Springs
July 23, 2007
Monday, July 23, 6:00 PM Update: Lower Temperatures Aid Firefighters on Granite Fire – Size 1050 Acres Bridger-Teton National Forest firefighters got some assistance from the weather today on the Granite fire, 22-miles northeast of Hoback Junction, Wyoming. “The rain that moved through the area today didn’t do as much for the fire as the lower temperatures and higher humidity,” said Jackson District Ranger Dale Deiter. The fire is estimated at 1050 acres and was calmer today than it has been in the past week. Approximately 70 people attended the public meeting that was held by the Incident Management team on Saturday July 21. The Bridger-Teton will present a workshop on beetles on Wednesday, July 25 at the Jackson Campus of the Teton Science School. This free workshop will help participants understand the lifespan of the beetle, what to do to prevent beetles from invading the trees on your property, and what to do if you already have a beetle infestation underway in the trees at your home.
Monday, July 23, 10:30AM Update: Fire at 940 Acres: The Granite fire, 22-miles northeast of Hoback Junction, north of Pinedale, Wyoming, is now 940-acres. This lightning caused fire discovered on Thursday, July 19th is burning in the Gros Ventre Wilderness and in the popular Granite Creek Drainage just two-miles north of Granite Hot Springs.
The Bridger-Teton National Forest has closed the Granite Hot Springs Road (Forest Service Road 30500) just north of the fork that leads to the Safari Club. Additionally, Granite Creek Campground and Granite Hot Springs pool have been closed. The Girl Scout Camp has been evacuated.
Two helicopters continue to work on the Granite fire, focusing their bucket drops on the southwest corner. Firefighters have set up sprinklers to protect the structures in the area and will continue to focus their efforts on keeping the fire from moving south. The Granite Hot Springs pool has provided a useful water source for the firefighter’s sprinkler systems during this suppression effort. Helicopters have been able to utilize nearby lakes for their water supply.
Other Area Fires
Favorable weather conditions helped firefighter contain 40 large fires in the West since Friday. Currently, 45 wildland fires and more than 1.5 million acres are burning in 11 states. Resource availability is expected to improve as large fires in southern California, Nevada and Oregon are contained in the next couple days.
The National Preparedness Level is 5, which means large fire activity is occurring in multiple geographic areas and there is a heavy commitment of crews, aircraft and equipment to these incidents. The weather forecast is for continued hot, dry, windy conditions. Nationally, there are ten Type 1 and sixteen Type 2 Incident Management Teams committed, according to the Forest Service National Incident Information Center.
The number and coverage of thunderstorms will be on the increase as monsoon moisture spreads into the region over the next few days. Thunderstorms today will be a mixture of wet and dry storms over the northern Great Basin, Montana and Wyoming with wet storms over the southern Great Basin and southern California. Most thunderstorms will become wetter on Tuesday.
Wyoming/Yellowstone National Park fires:
Owl Fire The lightning-started Owl Fire is burning in the northwest corner of Yellowstone National Park, in an area east of US Highway 191, north of the Montana/Wyoming state line, and south of Specimen Creek. Firefighters are doing backburns to help control the direction of the burn. As of Monday, July 23, it was 217 acres and 0% Contained. While all visitor services, park entrances, and roads are open; some trails and backcountry campsites in the area near the fire are temporarily closed. Hikers, anglers, backpackers, and stock users planning to go into the northwest corner of the park are encouraged to call the Backcountry Office at (307) 344-2160 for more information. Recorded information on the Owl Fire is available 24-hours a day by calling (307)344-2580, or on the web at www.inciweb.org/incident/855/ and www.nps.gov/yell/parkmgmt/firemanagement.htm. Yellowstone National Park will hold a public meeting Monday evening, July 23, to update interested community members on the status of the Owl Fire. It will begin at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Center in Gardiner, Montana.
Beaver Dam Fire This new fire was discovered in Yellowstone National Park late last evening, Sunday July 22, by the Mount Sheridan fire lookout. It is located in the backcountry near the southeast arm of Yellowstone Lake. A reconnaissance flight is slated for later this morning to evaluate the fire. This will be the twelfth fire in the park this year.
Idaho & Utah Fires:
Multiple large fires are burning in Idaho and Utah and some of the smoke from those fires is impacting visibility and air quality in our Upper Green River Valley. The largest fire is the Murphy Complex, which threatens Mountain Home Air Force Base near Twin Falls, Idaho. More info on Idaho/Utah fires: Eastern Great Basin fires
Murphy Complex The 56,721-acre Murphy Complex is burning fifty-six miles southwest of Twin Falls, Idaho in brush and juniper. Evacuation of several communities remains in effect. Numerous communities, Mountain Home AFB Training Range facilities and ranches are threatened.
Related Links:
National Fire News National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) Daily Fire Update
Forest Service Morning Fire Report
Daily Large Fire Map (NIFC)
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