The Plumas Hotshots arrived in Western Alaska on Tuesday to join the eight smokejumpers who have been working on the Richards Fire (#251), located about nine miles west of Huslia.
Firefighters were able to “go direct” today, working along the active edge of the fire. Firefighters conducting mop up are working 100 feet in from the perimeter of the fire’s edge to secure the control line and ensure hotspots are eliminated.
The Richards Fire is one of six fires in the Roundabout Complex. A Type 3 incident management team has been ordered for the complex. They are scheduled for in-briefing on Wednesday.
The other active fires in the complex include:
Moldy Fire (#279) – There was minimal fire activity on Tuesday. The fire is unstaffed; however, a reconnaissance flight today allowed firefighters to identify locations for temporary helicopter landing zones. These “helispots” would be used to get firefighters and supplies into the area to work on the fire, which remains about eight miles west of Huslia.
Caribou Fire (#128) – Four smokejumpers continued their structure protection work to protect values at risk near Hogatza. A helicopter flight helped fire managers identify areas where direct line might be built to protect areas of concern near a mine site.
Other fires of interest:
Nakochelik Fire (#306): The fire is contained and the eight smokejumpers assigned to it are scheduled to be demobilized on Wednesday.
The Aniralik Fire (#204) and New Cottonwood Fire (#325) – The fires have merged and are now known as the New Cottonwood Fire (#325), which is near Aniralik Lake. The fire’s edge was active Monday night. By Tuesday night, the eight smokejumpers assigned to the fire had walked 20 miles of line, looking for hotspots in the tundra and grass and putting them out.
-BLM-
Bureau of Land Management, Alaska Fire Service, P.O. Box 35005 1541 Gaffney Road, Fort Wainwright, AK 99703
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The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service (AFS) located at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, provides wildland fire suppression services for over 240 million acres of Department of the Interior and Native Corporation Lands in Alaska. In addition, AFS has other statewide responsibilities that include: interpretation of fire management policy; oversight of the BLM Alaska Aviation program; fuels management projects; and operating and maintaining advanced communication and computer systems such as the Alaska Lightning Detection System. AFS also maintains a National Incident Support Cache. The Alaska Fire Service provides wildland fire suppression services for America’s “Last Frontier” on an interagency basis with the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources, USDA Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Military in Alaska.
Categories: Active Wildland Fire, AK Fire Info, BLM Alaska Fire Service
Alaska Wildland Fire Information 