Christian Fire

Two people waring yellow shirts and green pants load wildland firefighting equipment onto an airboat on the banks of a river. A man stands on the river bank while handing a woman on the boat white hose.

Few staffed fires remain as firefighters demobilize across BLM AFS protection area

By on

The number of staffed fires in the BLM Alaska Fire Service protection area continues to decline. Most fires are now in monitor status. Some are being allowed to fulfill their natural ecological role, while firefighters focus on protecting nearby sites of value, transporting unneeded equipment back to the BLM AFS Cache in Fairbanks, or completing administrative tasks.

A wall of smoke rises up from a forest in the distance next to a river.

Conditions remain hot, dry in Yukon Flats while rain reduces activity across much of Alaska

By on

Operations are winding down across much of Alaska as rain has reduced fire activity and the need for firefighting resources — except in eastern Alaska, where conditions remain hot and dry.

Twelve BLM Alaska Fire Service smokejumpers were mobilized Monday night to protect an Alaska Native allotment along the Sheenjek River from the Christian Fire (#255), burning about 50 miles north of Fort Yukon. The fire has burned approximately 52,400 acres within the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge and remains active.