THE LATEST
—Snow Creek Fire grows to 1,815 acres
—Historic structures wrapped with protective material
—Rain, thunderstorms in the forecast for this weekend
Updated: 11 a.m., Aug. 9
The Snow Creek Fire deep in the Bob Marshall Wilderness has burned 1,815 acres, but firefighters say they are making progress toward protecting a number of historic structures in the area.
The week-old fire about 19 miles northeast of Condon has been burning and dead and downed fuels in an area that previously burned in 2000. Two-dozen firefighters are currently assigned to the fire and their main task in recent days has been to wrap a number of historic structures at the Black Bear and Salmon Forks administrative sites.
The following trails have been closed as a result of the fire: Hungry Creek, Helen Creek, Black Bear Creek, Rambler Creek, Mud Lake Lookout, Hodag Ridge Trail and Upper Mid Creek Trail, along with portions of the West Side, East Side, Picture Ridge and Little Salmon trails.
Elsewhere, firefighters are trying to douse a number of small fires in Sanders County, including one on Pat’s Knob east of Plains. Although the fire is just an acre in size, it’s burning in steep, rocky terrain. As of Friday morning, 11 firefighters and one helicopter have been assigned to the blaze. Also in Sanders County, the Plains/Thompson Falls Rural Fire Department declared the human-caused 5.5-acre Mandy Gulch Fire out.
The fire danger in Northwest Montana has been elevated to “very high.”
A wet weather system will arrive in Northwest Montana today, with rain and thunderstorms expected through Monday.
This story will be updated when additional information becomes available.