Bonanza Creek Fire (#238): 12,566 acres, 19% containment
Goldstream Creek Fire (#270): 20,483 acres, 41% containment
Personnel: 319
Evacuation Information: Evacuation levels were downgraded Monday, July 21st by the Fairbanks North Star Borough and the Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management along the Parks Highway corridor.
🔴 Level 3 ‘GO!’:
- Outside the Borough: From the borough’s western edge, 4.5 miles west; from Sled Road north for 7 miles from the Alaska Railroad. This includes Standard Creek Road and nearby timber harvest access areas. The areas more than ½ mile west of the highway corridor from MP 317 to the borough boundary. The areas more than ½ mile east of the highway corridor from MP 312 to the borough boundary and to the Tanana River east of the Maich Logging Rd.
- Inside the Borough: Zones include Skinny Dick’s Logging Road, Nenana Ridge Forestry Road and Bonanza Creek Forestry Area.
🟡 Level 2 ‘SET’:
- Outside the Borough: Residents within ½ mile on each side of the highway from MP 317 north to the borough boundary.
- Inside the Borough: Residents with ½ mile on each side of the highway from the borough boundary to north MP 338. The Standard Cache zone that includes the middle portion of Standard Creek Road and the beginning of Cache Creek Road.
🟢 Level 1 ‘READY’:
- Outside the Borough: Parks Highway MP 308-317 extending west of the highway to include homes along Little Goldstream Road, agricultural areas, and the Alaska Railroad. Extending east of the highway to include homes and agricultural areas west of the Maich Logging Rd, including Farmview Subdivision.
- Inside the Borough: Evacuation zones Parks Mile 338-342, Old Nenana Highway, Standard Creek, Old Ridge Trail, and Cache Creek Road.
Fire Weather: A high-pressure system continues through the weekend, creating fair weather conditions with moderate warming and drying. Saturday will be mostly sunny with a 1% chance of wetting rain. Maximum temperatures will be 73 degrees. Minimum relative humidity will be between 39%. Winds will be northeast at 5-10 mph. There is a possibility for increased fire behavior on Saturday with the weather shift drying out the fuel bed.
Fire Update: The Nenana Ridge Complex is currently at 33,069 acres and 30% containment. The northern side of the Goldstream Creek Fire remains in patrol and monitor status. An IR Drone Module and other aerial resources are conducting daily reconnaissance missions over the area, monitoring for any fire spread or reemerging heat.
Substantial progress has been made on the eastern finger of the fire, where Pike Hotshots have been spiked out. This section is currently holding. The hotshot crew has since moved out of the spike camp and is now working along the northern edge of the Bonanza Creek Fire, assisting with snagging operations in areas where fallen and fire-weakened trees could potentially impact the highway.
On the Bonanza Creek Fire, crews are patrolling along the Parks Highway, between Mile Post 329 and 334. Firefighters are also actively engaged in hot-spotting and felling projects along the northern edge of the fire. Crews are working to reopen access to Nenana Ridge Road, which runs through the fire area from the Parks Highway. Both the White Mountain Type 2 Initial Attack Crew and the Yukon Type 2 Initial Attack Crew are operating in the area—bucking and felling fire-damaged trees that are obstructing the logging road, as well as addressing hotspots. The Northeast Interagency 7 Crew has gridded and secured areas along the highway.
Backhaul operations continue in the northwest zone of the Bonanza Creek Fire. The majority of hoses have been removed, and crews are now pulling the remaining pumps and other water-handling equipment.
The southeastern portion—and the entire southern flank along the Tanana River—remains in patrol and monitor status, with no notable fire spread. The western flank is still exhibiting significant heat in the duff and heavy fuels, where the Aravaipa Hotshot Crew continues suppression efforts. A masticator is reinforcing the indirect line to the west of the area Aravaipa is working.
Heavy equipment, hazard trees, ash pits, and highway traffic remain potential hazards. As hunting season approaches, hunters and recreators are asked to stay out of the fire areas due to ongoing safety concerns. Crews are still actively engaged in firefighting operations.
No Drone Zone: Flying drones near wildfires is illegal and extremely dangerous, often leading to the grounding of firefighting aircraft and potentially causing harm to firefighters and property. A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the Nenana Ridge Complex. For more information go to https://tfr.faa.gov
Road Safety: As you drive the Parks Highway, you may not see much firefighting activity, but crews are working deeper in the fire area and are still accessing these areas via the highway. Please use extra caution and watch for firefighters and equipment, especially between MP 318 to 340. Pilot car operations are taking place through an active construction zone unrelated to fire activities. For more information about this construction project go to: https://dot.alaska.gov/nreg/parks319to325/. For real-time road updates, visit 511.alaska.gov.
Click the image for a downloadable PDF map of the Nenana Ridge Complex.
More Information: For official updates, visit Alaska Wildland Fire Information at facebook.com/AK.Forestry.
For a PDF version of this update click here.
For the interactive Alaska Wildland Fire Information Map Series go here: https://arcg.is/1a0yT03
For video briefings and more fire-related content from the Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection, visit our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@AlaskaDNRDOF
Public Information Line: (907) 331-0454
Email: 2025.nenanaridgecomplex@firenet.gov
Categories: Active Wildland Fire, AK Fire Info, Alaska DNR - Division of Forestry (DOF)
Alaska Wildland Fire Information 