Firefighters took advantage of the rain brought in by thunderstorms last night and made significant progress on the Starry Fire #234, reaching 60% containment.
The five crews working on the fire were able to secure 10 feet in around the perimeter of the fire, 50 feet in on a spot fire and slop-over fire on the south edge, and searched 150 feet outside the perimeter for any remaining heat.
After the rain, Operations Section Chief Kris Baumgartner said resources came back saying there was a “surprising” amount of interior heat.
The type three organization managing the Starry Fire has also been monitoring two additional fires in the area. Lost Fire #236 to the north and Seventeen-Mile Fire #258 west across the Nenana River.
The Lost Fire was reported on June 20th, about an hour after the Starry fire was reported; immediate action was not taken due to remoteness and minimal fire activity. Wednesday a group of firefighters traveled by FAT Truck to the Lost Fire, about 4 miles north of Anderson.
The fire was about an acre in size, burning in tundra and black spruce. The perimeter was about 12% active with no flame and little visible smoke. Firefighters put out the hotspots and gridded the fire for any additional heat. There was heavy jackstraw—downed trees stacked on each other holding heat. Firefighters plan to come back on Thursday and continue work on the fire.
Starry Operations did a helicopter reconnaissance mission out to the coordinates of the Seventeen Mile Fire and were unable to locate any visible smoke. Another reconnaissance flight of the Seventeen Mile Fire is planned for tomorrow. Seventeen Mile Fire was spotted on June 21st.
Categories: Active Wildland Fire, AK Fire Info
Alaska Wildland Fire Information 