The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service (AFS) located at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, provides wildland fire suppression services for over 244 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 with a $10 million inventory. 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.
The BLM Alaska Fire Service is wrapping up work on a pair of Yukon Flats fire this week as the days get shorter, cooler and wetter. With work reaching completion, equipment and firefighting personnel will be pulled from both the Marten Creek Fire (#386) and the Discovery Creek Fire (#388) on Wednesday.
The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service (BLM AFS) awarded three contracts for additional Type 2 wildland firefighting hand crews based in Western Alaska villages. The contractors selected will base crews in the Galena Fire Management Zone that covers most of Western Alaska.
Wetting rains fell on the pair of fires burning in the Yukon Flats, but the drier weather is forecasted to return in the upcoming days. Despite the moisture that significantly moderated fire behavior on Thursday, it is not enough to put the Marten Creek and Discovery Creek fires out.
The rainfall predicted for several days finally arrived on the pair of fires burning in the Yukon Flats. However, the forecasted amount is not likely to put out the Discovery Creek and Marten Creek Fires.
There was an uptick in fire behavior on the pair of fires burning in the Yukon Flats Tuesday as firefighters continue to work to protect Native allotments, historical cabins and the village of Venetie. The fire activity has been building for three days in a row due to the sunshine, temperatures in the 60s and lack of rain.
Predicted showers have not materialized over the fire areas as prolonged dry conditions and sunny skies instigated increased fire behavior on the Marten Creek and Discovery Creek fires Monday.
While most of Alaska is seeing a significant amount of rain, the Yukon Flats continues to experience sunny skies with minimal amounts of moisture. Two of the staffed fires in Alaska – the Marten Creek Fire and the Discovery Creek Fire burning about 30 miles northwest of Venetie – are in the Yukon Flats.
The two water-dropping airplanes worked the southwestern edge of the fire Saturday while the Alaska Division of Forestry White Mountain Type 2 Initial Attack Crew arrived in Venetie to begin work on the Marten Creek Fire (#386).
Fire activity has moderated around the state, freeing up crews and other resources as the Marten Creek Fire (#386) burning 10 miles northeast of Venetie transitions back into a Type 3 management organization today.
A mixture of cool, moist weather has tempered the Marten Creek Fire (#386) and Discovery Creek Fire (#388) burning in the Yukon Flats, giving firefighters a reprieve from the dry conditions that significantly increased the size of the two fires in the past few days.
