The National Weather Service has issued heat advisories and excessive heat warnings in northwest Montana where temperatures are forecast to hover in the upper 90s through Wednesday before cooling off to highs in the mid-80s into the weekend.
Kalispell reached mid-day high temperatures of 99 degrees on Saturday and Sunday, and the Flathead, Missoula and Bitterroot valleys along with the Seeley Lake region are under heat advisories over the next two days.
The Kootenai and Cabinet regions are also under an excessive heat warning through Tuesday night, and under a heat advisory until Wednesday. Libby and Eureka could see temperatures of 105 degrees and 103 degrees on Monday respectively and 99 degrees on Wednesday.
The exceptional heat, combined with concentrated wildfire smoke from fires near Missoula and Helena, is expected to persist through at least July 25, creating hazy conditions in the Flathead Valley. Forecasts call for increasing winds and low humidity through Thursday, adding to the risk of wildfire spread as fire danger in the region is classified as high.
All public land in Lake County, along with the entirety of the Flathead Indian Reservation, is currently under Stage 2 fire restrictions, which prohibits building, maintaining, attending or using a fire or campfire, with no exceptions. All public and private forested land in Sanders County is also subject to Stage 2 restrictions.
Dan Borsum, a Missoula-based forecaster with the Northern Rockies Coordinating Center, in June said residents should prepare for a warm, dry summer, and a wildland fire season that stretches past Labor Day.
Montana’s wildfire season arrived quickly during the month of July with the Montana Department of Natural Resources (DNRC) reporting 59 active wildfires as of July 22. The Horse Gulch Fire, which scorched more than 15,000 acres outside of Helena, is 92% contained, while south of Missoula the Miller Peak incident has surpassed 2,500 acres with just 10% containment.
In Flathead County, land management agencies have responded to several small wildfire starts including an incident on Lion Mountain outside of Whitefish on Saturday. The Whitefish Fire Department and DNRC responded to the small quarter-acre fire with hand crews, engines and a helicopter, containing the blaze on Saturday and continuing mop-up operations on Sunday. DNRC officials said Monday that smoke will likely be visible as crews continue their work, and ask that individuals avoid the area. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
On Monday, a fire was reported 11 miles west of Elmo along Montana Highway 28. According to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) Division of Fire, the fire is believed to have started from a boat trailer tire falling off and igniting grass along the highway. Crews have responded with support from three single engine air tankers, and the fire is estimated at 200 acres as of 2 p.m.
Increasing wildfire activity will continue to impact air quality across the state, which currently ranges from moderate in the Flathead Valley, to unhealthy for sensitive groups in Missoula to unhealthy in Great Falls.