Wyoming wildfires spark further evacuations

Authorities in Sheridan County ordered a fresh round of evacuations on Monday as crews continued to battle the now 89,000-acre Elk Fire. Fire managers also ordered new evacuations on the 77,600-acre Pack Trail Fire burning on the Bridger-Teton National Forest in northwest Wyoming.

Combined, the fires have burned roughly 260 square miles since lightning ignited them last month. That’s roughly the same area as Denver and Salt Lake City combined.

The Elk and Pack Trail fires are the biggest blazes now burning in Wyoming, which is enduring one of its worst fire seasons in memory.

“We know that conditions are extraordinarily fire prone,” Gov. Mark Gordon told reporters last week. “I think across the state, we’re going to put fire restrictions in place. The amount of acreage that we’ve burned up in Wyoming is unprecedented.”

Given the dry conditions, Gordon stressed the need for people to avoid behaviors that could lead to more fires — especially during hunting season. Reconnaissance on the Elk Fire, he noted, spotted two abandoned campfires that were left burning.

“Anybody who is thinking that it’s a good idea to leave a campfire under ordinary circumstances probably ought to be better educated,” he said. “But anybody doing that now, it is actually an extraordinarily bad idea. So I think people need to take the time to make sure that they take every care not to ignite a fire.”

Elk Fire

The Elk Fire’s latest evacuations included cabins and homes on the eastern side of the Bighorn Mountains, southwest of Sheridan. The changes, according to the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office, were precautionary in nature rather than due to extreme fire behavior.

The new evacuations were centered on the Red Grade Road area and included:

• Homes on Lower Hideaway, Upper Hideaway and Red Poll lanes.
• All cabins within the Teepee Cabin group.
• All cabins in the Black Tooth Cabin Association.
• Stumpty Ridge, Helsberg and Folley Ranch.

While the fire continues to expand, the growth has slowed as of late. Authorities reported a roughly 3,500-acre increase on Sunday and 1,500 acres of growth Monday.

“I think we’re in a good place,” Operations Section Chief Mike Reed said Monday in a video briefing posted on Bighorn National Forest’s Facebook page. “I think we’re getting set up for success. We have all the right pieces in place and we’ll just continue to plod along and hopefully be successful as we move.”

Lightning sparked the Elk Fire on Sept. 27 in the Bighorn National Forest east of Dayton. The blaze swelled amid warm, dry and windy conditions, moving southeast along the eastern shoulder of the Bighorn Mountains.

As this week began, nearly 950 personnel were working the blaze, supported by 13 aircraft and a slew of ground equipment. Firefighting crews on Sunday burned out an area south of the main fire to reduce fuels and slow its spread, according to a Monday update from the Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team 3.

“It’s basically helping to create a little bit of a catcher’s mitt here to help reduce the risk to [the nearby towns of] Big Horn and Story,” Reed said. “Although not entirely out of play, it does help to reduce the risk.”

Firefighters on Monday planned to continue protective operations near homes and other property in the Poverty Flat area, which is 45 minutes to an hour south of Sheridan. Those efforts included clearing flammable debris and setting up ponds, pumps and sprinkler systems, according to the update.

On nearby Red Grade Road, crews intended to spend Monday using heavy equipment to remove vegetation to allow for “strategic firing operations” and to stop the fire’s southward movement, if necessary.

Containment of the fire stood at 27% on Monday morning. Sunday’s more moderate temperatures led to minimal fire activity, which was expected to increase Monday due to warmer and drier conditions.

Pack Trail Fire

New evacuations also went into effect Monday in response to northwest Wyoming’s Pack Trail Fire. Teton County Emergency Management announced a noontime evacuation order for the Upper Gros Ventre area east of Goosewing Ranch.

Similar evacuation orders remained in effect for Lava Mountain Lodge and McKenzie Highland Ranch. But similar orders for Brooks Lake Lodge, Pinnacle Cabins, Falls Camp and Long Creek were reduced to a level-two warning, when residents are told to prepare for an evacuation but don’t have to leave the area yet.

The fire, which began Sept. 15, is now 62% contained.

On Sunday, crews had to contend with an unauthorized drone that flew over the fire area. Such flights, authorities say, are illegal and dangerous to firefighting aircraft.

Fire managers were bracing Monday for increased fire activity brought on by warmer and drier conditions. Crews continued to work to protect structures in the Gros Ventre valley by wrapping buildings, laying hoses and setting up sprinklers.

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