The Otter Fire (#344) about 50 miles northeast of Venetie is fully contained but not controlled. A helitack crew and 12 of the 20 smokejumpers assigned to the fire will remain in place Tuesday to continue reinforcing the control line and mopping up any interior hotspots that remain. The other eight smokejumpers will be flown off the fire so they can get ready for their next assignment.
The Otter Fire was reported on June 27. It was caused by lightning.
A dozen smokejumpers continue to fight the Fortymile Fire (#355) near Fortymile Creek about 25 miles northwest of Beaver. They are being assisted by scooper planes making water drops to cool hotspots and slow the fire’s spread.
The lightning-caused fire was reported on Sunday afternoon. It is burning in a long, narrow band across an area of black spruce. Firefighters reported hot, breezy weather Monday with 15 mph wind gusts from the south. No containment has been reported.
The Cherokee Hotshots were flown to the fire Monday night and will begin work Tuesday.
The Upper Yukon Zone is expected to see hot, dry weather this week with daytime temperatures in the 80s and 20% relative humidity. As a result, the potential for new fire starts, holdover fires, and rapid fire growth will go up.
-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 