Fire crews on the Horse Gulch Fire successfully contained two large fire spots outside of the fire area that sparked up due to high winds Sunday afternoon, as more hot weather is forecast for Montana later this week.
The fire, which stands at just under 12,800 acres about 20 miles northeast of Helena near the small town of York, started on July 9 and is thought to be human-caused and remains under investigation, according to official reports on InciWeb.
The fire area saw steady winds of 15 miles per hour and gusts of 25 mph were expected in the area on Sunday, but ground and aerial fire crews were able to contain the two new fire spots following the windy afternoon.
The Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office moved its evacuation order for residents in the area of Jimtown Road to Hellgate Gulch Road south of Canyon Ferry Road to an evacuation warning on Sunday. Only residents will be allowed in the area and proof of residency is required.
Canyon Ferry Road is closed at Canyon Ferry Village to the Broadwater-Lewis and Clark county line. Hellgate, Court Sheriff, Chinamen’s Gulch and Riverside campgrounds are closed and roads, lands and campgrounds are closed in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest generally from the Gates of the Mountains south through Confederate Gulch.
Fire crews on Sunday established hand lines in the steep terrain of the fire area between 693B1 Road and 425 Road to tie in with a dozer line at Neversweat Gulch. The southern fire line was strengthened and progress was made to continue reinforcing the line from Jimtown Road to York.
Aerial crews dropped 80,000 gallons of fire retardant on Sunday as well as 70,000 gallons of water by helicopter and 300,000 gallons of water by Super Scoopers, according to Monday’s update on InciWeb, with ground crews assisting after the flames cooled from the drops.
On Monday, fire crews were working on bridging the gaps between existing fire lines by “cold trailing,” or the process of inspecting the edges of the fire lines for hidden areas of heat beneath the ground.
High cloud cover on Sunday also helped to moderate fire activity, according to Monday’s report, with humidity dipping into the lower teens and temperatures dropping into the low 90s. Winds Monday were forecasted to be lower than usual over the past week, with gusts up to 15 mph in the afternoon.
No structures have been lost in the fire as of Monday, according to the Helena Independent Record.
High temperatures in the Great Falls area will be in the low 90s through Tuesday before spiking again to 96 on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service, and up to 98 on Thursday and 97 through Sunday.
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