A very brief introduction to the Helena-Lewis Clark National Forest (Montana) and Fuel Management

I just finished reading Fury and the Beast by Dave Scott where he writes about his 27 year career as a wildland firefighter. For the last few years of his service was a Manager in the Lincoln Ranger District, one of the districts in the Helena-Lewis Clark National Forest. 

Obtained on January 9, 2026 from The Helena-Lewis Clark National Forest

I enjoyed learning about the forests and mountains in western Montana as I read Mr. Scott’s book. He had many pictures and maps in the book which gave me useful visual images about what I was reading. He also spent a lot of time describing the different kinds of prescribed burns in the forests of western Montana. I was very fortunate to find two videos that I am sharing with you below to give you a glimpse into the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest where the Lincoln District is one of the districts. 

The first video that I embed below features a tour of the eastern half of the Helena-Lewis Clark National Forest (  ) from More Than Just Parks. This video is labeled part 1, unfortunately I can not find part 2 perhaps it has not ready for dissemination yet or maybe I was unable to find it on YouTube.

Direct link to September 2023 video from More Than Just Parks on YouTube

In the second and final video, you will learn about a draft 2025 plan for wildfire fuels reduction in the Helena-Lewis Clark National Forest. I do not know if these plans were actually implemented, I hope that these plans were implemented. I liked the video because they talk about risks in the Forest and how fuel management in the Forest can mitigate these risks. Unfortunately I cannot embed the video here, but please go to this link from KPAX-TV (July 2025) to learn about this draft plan

2021 wildfire season: IMET deployments as of August 19th

I have been thinking about the many wonderful NWS Incident Meteorologists who are currently deployed to wildfires, most but not all in the western United States, providing crucial weather forecasts for the area burned by a specific wildfire so that wildland firefighters on the ground and in the air will be alerted to upcoming weather so that they can be as safe as possible.

I contacted the US NWS IMETs recently asking them how many IMETs are currently deployed to wildfires including trainees. This is their response on Thursday evening, August 19th:

Currently we have about 30 qualified IMETs and 4 trainees out.  We have another 8 en route to incidents or to swap other IMETs out as they time out.

IMET deployments (obtained from US NWS IMETs Facebook Page on August 20th) from August 16th through August 19th include:

• Antelope Fire  burning in the Klamath National Forest near McCloud, Oregon
• McCash Fire burning in the Six Rivers National Forest near Somes Bar, California
• Caldor Fire burning in the Eldorado National Forest near Plymouth, California
• Monument Fire burning in the Trinity National Forest near Del Loma, California (2 IMETs)
• Ford Corkscrew Fire burning near Springdale, Washington
• Greenwood Fire burning in the Superior National Forest near Duluth, Minnesota
• Burnt Peak Fire burning in the Kootenai National Forest near Troy, Montana
• Bulldog Mountain Fire burning in the Colville National Forest near Colville, Washington
• Dixie Fire burning in the Lassen National Forest near Susanville, California
• Twenty Five Mile Fire burning in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest near Wenatchee, Washington
• McFarland Fire burning in the Shasta-Trinity Forest near Wildwood, California

IMETs typically are deployed for two weeks, some wildfires have two IMETs (not including IMET trainees). Thanks to all the IMETs deployed to wildfires. Thanks so much for your service during what may be challenging conditions. IMETs save lives. 

2021 wildfire season: Montana wildfires updates

For the last few days I have been reflecting on the current wildfires burning in Montana, partly because the New Jersey Forest Fire Service has or had engines with crew deployed to Montana to help fight the wildfires in Montana but also because I had friends who used to live in Montana. I wanted to write something here to acknowledge the bad wildfire season in Montana and to lend my support to the wildland firefighters on the ground and in the air battling these wildfires. Kudos to all wildland firefighters in Montana fighting these blazes. Thank-you widlfire crews for protecting those who live or work in or near areas impacted by wildfires. Here are some wildfires currently burning in Montana that have burned over 10,000 acres, courtesy of Inciweb. It is my intention to include all such wildfires in the list below, but I may have missed some.

• Taylor Fire (27,718 acres)
• PF Fire (66,134 acres)
• American Fork Fire (14,397 acres)
• Woods Creek Fire (18,107 acres)
• Harris Mountain (31,345 acres)
• Alder Creek Fire (11,313 acres)
• Trail Creek Fire (35,661 acres)
• West Lolo Fire (17,923 acres)

Direct link to YouTube video from NBC Montana

2020 wildfire season: thanks to NJFFS deployed in western USA

I am sure that many of you have joined me in thinking and offering our own personal prayers for all those affected by this devastating wildfire season in the western United States. As I have done so, I am every mindful of the men and women of the NJ Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) who are currently deployed on wildfires out west. So this post is in honor of all of the men and woman of the NJFFS who have served out west, are currently deployed out west, or are awaiting deployment. You are working hard on your assignments, I know that you are doing your best to be safe so that you can come home to your family and friends at the end of your deployment. I know that your service is appreciated by those who live or work near the fires you are working on. 

I found a nice article late last week, from the SandPaper (September 24th), New Jersey Forest Fire Service busier than ever this year with western wildfires. I want to share it with you and encourage you to take a few moments to read this great article offering a little insight into the work that NJFFS crews are doing out west. At the time the article was written, there had been 74 firefighters and 10 engines deployed out west. Most drove but at least one crew flew. One of the NJFFS firefighters who is deployed out west is Bill Donnelly from Mays Landing NJ, a 30 year veteran, who is serving as a task force leader. He shares a little about the work that his crews are doing:

‘A fire’s a fire’s a fire,” Donnelly said resolutely. “Some are bigger than others, but the work that goes into putting them out is the same.” That was not to downplay the gravity of the situation, as he described this particular season as “chaotic.’

‘It’s just like you see on the news,’ he said. ‘The fires are raging, burning down houses, killing people. There is something to be said about that.’

Donnelly’s team is in northern California, bordering Oregon, on a million-acre fire. ‘It’s a pretty big one,’ he said, comparing the size to about one-third of New Jersey. The work involved requires long hours and extensive hiking on very little rest. Just getting to the fire takes his team three to four hours. ‘We’re working in areas where homes have already burned down around us,’ he described. ‘We’re keeping it in check and keeping it from carrying on further.’

Donnelly outlined the multiple factors at work creating the prolonged disaster on the West Coast. First, there has simply been an overwhelming number of fires due to intense weather, high winds and low humidity: ‘All the ingredients necessary for fire are at play.’ With the longer season comes the need for more responders.

I wrote a couple of family and friends who live in southern California, telling them about all the crews and engines that the NJFFS has sent to California. They said to say "thank-you, we appreciate it." 

I don't want to leave out other states in the eastern region, please know how much your service means to me. 

I am honored by the service of all from New Jersey and elsewhere in the eastern region who have been or are currently deployed out west. You honor us with your service. Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you

2020 wildfire season: update on NJFFS deployments (September 10th)

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) continues to provide crews and engines to the western United States to help fight wildfires. I am very proud of all the NJFFS crews and engines, you are doing good work under tough conditions. You are sacrificing time with your family and friends because what you do is fight fires and you help where you are needed. Here are two reports highlighting the NJFFS crews work out west. The first is by Josh Axelrod reporting for New Jersey Advance Media on September 4th, with a paywall. Unfortunately, you may not be able to read the article, but just in case try going here to see if you can view the article, apologies if you can not access the article. I felt it important to acknowledge good local reporting on the NJFFS deployment. Axelrod reports that "over the last six weeks 51 New Jersey Firefighters have been sent to western States, with nine currently in California." NJFFS Chief Greg Mclaughlin talks about the deployment with Axelrod of New Jersey Advance Media:

“Something’s changing,” McLaughlin said. “Why it’s changing, how it’s changing, is still uncertain or unclear. It’s the extremes that’s happening that are really causing an unpredictability.”

In response to another year of volatile forest fires, NJFFS has sent three modules, or 10-person crews, to Wyoming, four engines to California, an engine to Nevada, an engine and resource specialists to Colorado and two helicopter managers to Montana.

Two to three crew members man each engine that drive across the country to their assignment. When crews arrive, they typically camp out, though occasionally they stay in hotels.

“There’s great eagerness to go and help out,” McLaughlin said. “It’s what they’re trained to do and it’s what their career is. It can be stressful, and it’s a sacrifice, because in the summer, school’s off, your kids are home, and you’re agreeing to leave for two weeks, to leave your family and commit to this. So it’s a big sacrifice, but there’s an eagerness and a high level of commitment to wanting to do it.”

The second report, from 6ABC in Philadelphia is freely available. I am not sure how long the link will be active so if you are arriving here some time after the date of this article, and the links are broken, you will know why. The September 10th report from 6ABC with a video may be found here, and I am embedding the video at the end of this article.

Here is an excerpt from the 6ABC report:

Yesterday, the winds were probably 15 to 20 mph all day," said Larry Birch.

Birch is part of a team from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service who are aiding those in California.

A total of 60 fires continue to scorch three states Wednesday night, including California, Washington and Oregon.

Firefighters are attacking the flames from the ground and the air, 14,000 people are on the frontlines just in California.

"(It's) very hot, we were caught in 100 degree days," said Birch.

The winds have produced everything from mushroom cloud-like plumes of smoke to vortexes that can make it almost impossible for firefighters to contain.

"I mean it was just chasing spot fires after spot fires, we have to hold the line," said Birch.

New Jersey Forest Service helping out in Montana

Sometime over the summer, I'm not quite sure when, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) sent an Engine Strike Team (comprised of three engines) plus crew to help fight wildfires in Montana. I am very proud of the engines and the crews who have been helping fight the wildfires in Montana. I would like to thank my friends at the NJFFS Section A2 for the great reporting that they did on their Facebook page. I am going back 1 month to provide you with some highlights of what the NJFFS Engine Strike Team has been doing in Montana. Links provided to Federal Fires listed on Inciweb where possible.

August 14, NJFFS Engine Strike Team released from the Trail Fire and released to Miles City Dispatch (Montana) for reassignment.

August 20, NJFFS Engine Strike Team is still at Miles City. 

August 24 NJFFS Engine Strike Team at Miles City, crews transitioning. One crew demobilizing, another crew on way

August 27th, NJDDS Engine Strike Team released from Maurer Mountain Fire and enroute to Mendenhall Fire (Sweetgrass County, 3 miles south of Springdale, Montana)

August 29: photos from the Mendenhall Fire were NJFFS Engine Strike Team was then assigned.

August 31 NJFFS Engine Strike released from Mendenhall Fire and assigned to Sartin Draw Fire in Powder River County, 35 miles northwest of Broads, MT.

September 1, NJFFS Engine Strike Team still at Sartin Draw Fire, photos.

September 5, NJFFS Engine Strike Team returns to Miles City Dispatch Center. Crews in process of transitioning

September 6, transition day.

September 7, NJFFS Engine Strike Team assigned to Hart Fire, Rosebud County

September 14, NJFFS Engine Strike Team assigned to Blacktail Fire, east of Loco Mountain in the Crazy Mountains. 

Updated on September 16th at 12:30 PM. NJFFS Engine Strike Team has been released from the Blacktail Fire, returned to Miles City and will be returning to New Jersey.

Helicopter flight over Pioneer Fire

One of the Facebook pages that I check out periodically during wildfire season is by US National Weather Service (NWS) IMET. IMET's are National Weather Service Meteorologists who have received special training to provide onsite meteorological services for wildland fires (see the about tab on the USNWS IMET facebook page for more information, I wrote about IMETs on August 10th and August 11th (2016). IMETs save lives!

The US National Weather Service IMET (Facebook) has some useful information including when and where IMETs are deployed during wildfire season. But there is also other good information posted on that page, which is how I found about the video that I am embedding below. 

I was interested to read September 2, 2016 post on the US National Weather Service IMET Facebook Page. An IMET from the NWS Weather Forecast Office in Jackson, Mississippi was assigned to the Pioneer Fire at the end of August. On August 29th, he had a chance to go on a helicopter flight over the Pioneer Fire when it was making run. It seems that the Pioneer Fire grew by 30,000 acres that day. According to the commentary by Dan Byrd that accompanies the video (direct link to Aug 29th Helicopter Flight over the Pioneer Fire: "The fire put up a 40k foot plume today and consumed 30 thousand acres just north of Boise ID."

I don't know the nature of the helicopter flight, probably reconnaissance. In any event, the video is over nine minutes long with some great footage of an active and growing fire. Impressive! According to an August 30th news release about the Pioneer Fire, the fire had burnt about 140,780 acres on August 30th, up from 111,604 acres on August 29th. As I write this, the Pioneer Fire (page updated periodically, what you see may be different) has burned 188,404 acres in Boise National Forest near Boise Idaho and is at 64 percent containment. 

I shared a video on September 12th showing the Umatilla Initial Attack Crew working the Pioneer Fire on or about August 4th.

Umatilla IA Crew - Pioneer Fire

I just came upon this nice video of the Umatilla Initial Attack Crew working the Pioneer Fire in early August of this year. As I write this, the Pioneer Fire  was first reported on July 18, 2016, it has burned 185,895 acres in the Boise National Forest in Idaho, and is at 56 percent containment.

Note the video was uploaded to Youtube by Brock Shelton on August 4th. At the time the video was made the fire had burned 50,237 acres.


Direct link to video uploaded by Brock Shelton

NJ Forest Fire Crews deployed out west (2nd time this season)

August 31, 2016, 1:20 PM EDT

A New Jersey Forest Fire Service Crew continues to work the Tie Fire. The Tie Fire has burned 1,031 acres and is at 60 percent containment as I write this update. There are no mandatory evacuations in place, but there is a level one evacuation notice in place. I believe that a level one evacuation encourages people to leave the area, see this article from LocalNews8 in Idaho Falls Idaho.

August 29, 2016, 6:00 PM EDT
Another New Jersey Forest Fire Service Crew (NJS #2) was deployed out west on or about August 25th to help crews fight wildfires. As I understand NJS #2 was working the Henrys Creek Fire that hs burned 52,972 acres with 81 percent containment (Buearu of Land Management, Idaho Falls District) through this past weekend. They have been reassigned to the Tie Fire which has burned 1,014 acres in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest near Idaho Falls (44 percent containment). There are evacuations orders in place, I am not quite sure if this is a  mandatory or voluntary evacuation order. Some photos of the Tie Fire, including some photos of aircraft that have worked the fire may be found here.

I accessed the Eastern Area Coordination Center's Interagency Resource Representative Report on August 29, 2016 at about 10 AM and again at 3 PM, the report updates about 1 PM CDT when crews are assigned out west.

CL-415s scooping - Pioneer Fire (ID)

Here is a nice video that I just rain across, uploaded by Airailimages on August 21st, of two CL-415 scooping out of Deadwood Lake, Idaho in support of the Pioneer Fire. As I write this, the Pioneer Fire has burned 101,922 acres and is at 40 percent containment. The fire, burning eight miles north of Idaho City in the Boise National Forest, was first reported on July 18th, the cause is unknown. According to this August 24th news release on the Pioneer Fire's Inciweb page, evacuations remain in place. Depending on when you are accessing this article, there may be more current news releases on the Pioneer Fire's Inciweb page, you may access the latest news release here.


Direct link to video

NJ Forest Fire Crew demobilized & more on IMETs

After I made yesterday's (August 10th) post , I found out that the New Jersey Forest Fire Service crew (NJS #1) has been demobilized from the Roaring Lion Fire. Not only did I see this reported on social media, but I also saw this reported on the August 10th Eastern Area Interagency Resources Representative (IARR) Crew Report, the latest report is available here. The IARR is, I think, updated a few times a week while crews from the Eastern Area are deployed outside the eastern area, so what you see may be different from the IARR that I saw last night. The IARR is available from the Eastern Area Coordination Center.

I'd like to thank the NJS #1 crew for all the good work that you did working the Roaring Lion Fire which has burned 8,274 acres to date and is at 65 percent containment. I understand that the crew visited the Smokejumper base in Missoula Montana, you may see their photo below.

I'm not quite sure if NJS #1 crew is coming home now or if they are going somewhere else. I'll update this post as I find out what they are doing.



And speaking of the Roaring Lion Fire, recall that I wrote about the IMET, Dan Borsum from NWS Billings Montana yesterday. I was able to get in touch with Mr. Borsum via e-mail yesterday thanks to the NWS Billings MT who forwarded my e-mail to him. I am very impressed by his dedication as an IMET to providing weather forecasts and briefings to keep all the firefighters working the Roaring Lion fire safe including but not limited to those from outside the area (like the NJS #1 crew and other crews from the east) who may have been unfamiliar with the area.

The Roaring Lion Fire is in the Bitterroot National Forest which includes some mountainous terrain. I know enough to know that  weather forecasts involving mountainous terrain such as the mountains in the Bitterroot National Forest can be challenging. I am again left with a renewed appreciation for the complex nature of weather forecasting, including fire weather forecasting. I was chatting with a now retired wildland firefighter last night about IMETs, he commented to me that IMETs save a lot of lives. Nice work Dan! Thank-you all IMETs.

Dan shared a photo with me of a thunderstorm that affected one of the camps at the Roaring Lion Fire one night. He gave me permission to share this with you. Wow. I'm glad that you were there to keep all safe from these thunderstorms.

Thunderstorm impacting Roaring Lion Camp

Roaring Lion Fire - Incident Meteorologist

I have been writing about the Roaring Lion Fire recently, see my August 3rd and August 8th articles, because the New Jersey Forest Fire Service has a crew that is working the Roaring Lion Fire along with other crews from the Eastern Area. As I write this, the Roaring Lion Fire (in the Bitterroot National Forest near Hamilton Montana) remains at 8,274 acres and is at 60 percent containment, perhaps thanks in part to some cool and wet weather yesterday (see this August 9th report from KXLH 9 with video). Evacuation orders are still in place.

I want to take the opportunity to draw your attention to the very important work done by IMETs, also known as Incident Meteorologists. As I understand it, Incident Meteorologists are National Weather Service Meteorologists that have received special training to provide on-site weather forecasting services to incidents including but not necessarily limited to wildfires. Deployments typically last two weeks or until the wildfire is maintained, see this article on IMETs from the National Weather Service for more information. I am introducing IMETs now because there is an IMET working the Roaring Lion Fire, he describes what being an IMET involves in this video (uploaded on Aug 7th) that I found on Inciweb's Roaring Lion Fire photo page. One of the things that an IMET does is to launch a Weather Balloon with a radiosonde. A radiosonde has a variety of instruments to take upper air readings that Meteorologists use to help them make forecasts. Here is a very short video of the Roaring Lion Fire IMET launching a weather balloon. Here is an article describing yesterday's weather on the Roaring Lion Fire from NBC Montana.

I'd like to thank the IMET, Dan Borsum from the NWS Billings Montana Office, for all that he is doing providing meteorological services to the Roaring Lion Fire, to help the fire crews stay safe and work the fire effectively. Thank-you Dan! I share a brief reflection on what I am learning about IMETs and share a photo that Dan shared with me to share with you in my August 11th post.

Thanks to my friends from the NWS Mt. Holly for helping me with a brief fact check in writing this article.

NJ Forest Fire Service Crews working the Roaring Lion Fire

I wrote in my August 3, 2016 blog article that a New Jersey Forest Fire crew is working the Roaring Lion Fire. According to the latest Daily Managers Briefing from the Eastern Area Coordination Center (EACC, see note 1) this crew (known as NJS#1) was mobilized out west on July 29th. If I am not mistaken, this is a two week assignment. As I write this, the Roaring Lion Fire has burned 8,274 acres and is at 30 percent containment (this inciweb page is updated frequently while the fire is active, so you may see a later version). The cause of the fire, first reported on July 31st, is unknown.

I understand that there were evacuations in place and that some residents are allowed back in to their homes. An update on the evacuations (dated August 7th at 7:30 PM local time) from the Ravilli County Sheriff may be found here. According to an August 5th update from the Ravilli County Sheriff sixteen residences were destroyed and 49 outbuildings and nonresidential structures reported as seeing some level of damage from the fire.

The Missoulian (August 8th) is reporting on additional evacuations and closure of a portion of the Bitteroot River issued on August 8th.

Aircraft have worked the fire, see for example helo photo 1 and helo photo 2.

Additional Media reports on the Roaring Fire:
KPAX8 (August 5th) with photos
KPAX8 (August 7th)
Missoulian (August 7th)

Note 1: this briefing, also referred to as the Morning Briefing is updated daily so what you see may not be what I am referring to. The latest Morning Briefing (also referred to as the Daily Briefing or Managers Briefing) is posted on the EACC Intelligence Page under Predictive Services. If you want to see the latest Morning Briefing, go here.

Updated on August 11, 2016:  neglected to mention that when the Eastern Area Coordination Center has eastern area crews deployed outside the eastern area, that there is report known as the Interagency Resource Representative Report (IARR) that is updated when eastern crews are deployed outside the eastern region. The latest IARR report is available here.

New Jersey Forest Fire Service Crew working out west

August 3, 2016 2:40 PM

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service has mobilized a crew that is currently working the Roaring Lion Fire, that has burned 7,130 acres in the Bitteroot National Forest near Hamilton, Montana. As I write this, the fire is not contained. I understand from the morning briefing that I saw on the Eastern Area Coordination Center that I saw today that the eastern region has three crews in addition to the NJ Forest Fire Crew working the fire. I am very happy that crews from the east are helping fight this fire.

Updated on August 8, 2016: the Roaring Fire has burned 8,274 acres and is at 30 percent containment. Evacuations are in place and 16 residences have been destroyed, see my August 8th article for more information.

Updated on August 11, 2016: The New Jersey Forest Fire Service crew (NJS #1) that was working the Roaring Lion Fire has been demobilized, see my August 11th post for more information. Also, I neglected to mention that when the Eastern Area Coordination Center has eastern area crews deployed outside the eastern area, that there is report known as the Interagency Resource Representative Report (IARR) that is updated when eastern crews are deployed outside the eastern region. The latest IARR report is available here.

Wildfires in north western US - August 31st

Thanks again to Mike Archer's Wildfire News of the Day for the links to these articles, you may subscribe to Mike's six day a week e-mail newsletter here.

NPR report: Western Wildfires Outpace Weary Firefighting Crews (August 30, 2015)

Link to NPR story with audio

Oregon, Idaho and western Montana

• Summary of Oregon Wildfires (Oregon Live, August30th with photos)
• Summary of Idaho Wildfires (Spokesman-Review, August 30th)
• There was an August 30th report from the Independent Record saying the wildfires in Western Montana were helped by rain. The link is no longer available.

Revised on October 12, 2015 to removed dead links.

More on the wildfires out west

I am going on an outing in a couple of hours, a day trip for some recreation. My thoughts and prayers continue for all those affected by the wildfires in the western portion of the U.S. Before going, I haven't yet had breakfast, I want to make this post.

There are a lot of wildland firefighters from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. The military is helping. Crews from many States, including New Jersey are helping. Our friends in Canada have sent some air tankers to help us out. Our friends from Canada have (again) sent us some air tankers to help. Stay safe everyone and thanks for all you are doing.

The National Interagency Fire Center issued a Press Release on August 20th (download here) about mobilizing wildland firefighters from Australia and New Zealand. I understand that they have arrived and are working in Washington and Oregon.

Here are three articles focusing on the wildfires that I learned about through Mike Archers Wildfire News of the Day, a six-day a week e-mail newsletter that you may subscribe to here.

America is at War with Fire (U.S. Military helping to fight wildfires), Warisboring on August 25th
39 photos of Washington Wildfires from the Yakima Herald with links to more articles)
Christian Science Monitor (article and video, August 22nd) on the crews fighting the wildfires (including prisoners, military and crews from other countries)

New Jersey Forest Fire Service will send more firefighters out west

An August 21st press release from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection came to my attention last night. The New Jersey Forest Fire Service will be sending a second crew of 20 wildland firefighters to help fight the wildfires out west. They will be leaving this weekend or early next week. Here is an excerpt from the August 21st NJDEP press release:

Responding to the growing need for support to fight Western wildfires, the Christie Administration is sending an additional 20 members of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service and New Jersey State Forestry Services to assist in the battling of wildfires that are raging across parts of the Northwest, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin announced today. … “Our commitment to assist in this national effort to battle these dangerous fires is unwavering,” Commissioner Martin said. “We are proud to be sending our dedicated and brave crews from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service to pitch in and help protect others.”

I ended my original post by sharing a video report from NBC10 in Philadelphia reporting on the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) crew that was working the Morrell Complex of wildfires in Montana in the Lolo National Forest near Seeley Lake, 516 acres had burned and the fire was at 10 percent containment when I wrote the article. Unforunately, as sometimes happens, the video link has expired. The report also mentioned the three NJFFS trucks working fires in Washington and an update (Augustl 21st about 5 PM) on the wildfires burning in out west.

Edited and revised on October 20, 2015

NJ Forest Fire Service Crew in Montana fighting wildfires

In an article I wrote on August 18th on the wildfires burning in the western USA, I mentioned that the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) had deployed 32 wildland firefighters to help battle the wildfires burning out west with trucks going to Oregon and a crew of NJFFS wildland firefighters going to Idaho, Montana, or Oregon. See this August 16th article from the NJ Herald for more information.

I knew that the NJFFS crew was in Montana and that they are already working on their second fire. It wasn't until today that I had some specific information to share. That is, a crew of 20 NJFFS wildland firefighters is currently assigned to the Morrell Complex of wildland fires that has burned 476 acres in the Lolo National Forest, the fire is at 15 percent containment. The most current information on this fire may be found at the Morrell Complex Inciweb page. I am going to quote some information that I found on the Morrell Complex Inciweb page at the time that I am writing this article (4:05 PM on August 21st), the information is current as of August 21st at 10:45 AM:

Summary: Another very active fire day today (Friday) which is expected to have similar conditions as yesterday, but leaning towards slightly cooler temperatures and stronger winds causing a RED FLAG WARNING to be in effect. Winds will be shifting from southwest to northeast direction with gusts nearing 45 mph. A cold front will be passing through with a 20% chance of wetting rain in the evening. The fire is now estimated to be 476 acres. The percent contained changed from 25% to 15% yesterday due to the fire growing beyond established firelines on the eastern flanks. Over 120 members of the public joined together at a community meeting last night to hear the latest strategies and meet local fire management officials. 

Resources: Heavy equipment continues to be the primary resource on hand for the fire. This includes one 20-person handcrew from New Jersey, 3 excavators, 1 feller-buncher, 3 water tenders, 4 engines, 1 dozer, 5 “skidgines” and a helicopter with bucket for line work and initial attack. A total of 107 firefighters, including overhead, are currently working on the fire. Resource orders have been placed for additional hand crews, miscellaneous overhead and safety officers. (emphasis added)

I am very proud to have a crew of wildland firefighters helping fight the Morrell Complex of wildfires. I am sure that Montana appreciates the help.

As I was preparing to write this blog post, I found this August 20th article on NJ dot com, a nice article about one of the NJFFS wildland firefighters, Sean Riley.  Riley is working on the crew in Montana. Riley is the head of the Newfield NJ Fire Department. Riley explains in the article about some of the testing that is involved in being a wildland firefighter and volunteering for out-of-state duty (Riley put his name on list of NJFFS wildland firefighters willing to do out-of-state duty in 2015) in this excerpt from the August 20th article:

"You take a three-mile pack test where you have 45 pounds on your back. You have to cover [that distance] in 45 minutes," Riley said. The pack test is just one of several rounds of qualifications firefighters must go through before they're cleared to take on jobs of this magnitude. 

When the U.S. Forest Service puts out the call for volunteers, firefighters have two days to respond. If they accept, the firefighters are sent to the scene for a two-week assignment. 

"You know when you sign up that it's going to be last-minute," said Riley. "You don't know when it'll happen. It's a matter of when the fires reach a certain point."

I have heard that the NJFFS trucks (three type 4 engines and their crew) may be in Oregon, I'm not quite sure where.

Updated on August 22, 2015: According to this August 21st press release from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the three NJFFS trucks that arrived in the west on August 17th were assigned to work wildland fires in Washington and are still there. This same press release also mentions that the New Jersey Forest Fire Service is sending an additional 20 wildland fires out west to help fight wildfires out west.

New Jersey Forest Fire Service Wildland Firefighters in state and working out of state, you rock and I am proud of you. Stay safe.

Cape Horn Fire (Idaho Panhandle National Forest)

July 8 at 5:00 PM

According to the last update that I found on the Cape Horn incident page at Inciweb (2 PM on July 8), the fire has burned 1,380 acres and is at 35 percent containment. I believe that evacuations are still in place. Bill Gabbert writes about the Cape Horn today (July 8th), including some photographs and a video of campers being rescued by a boat.

The Spokesman-Review has a photo gallery of the fire with links for some of their coverage. KXLY has a report and video dated July 8th (11:19 AM) reporting on the reduction in acreage burned to 1,380 acres, containment, and an update on the evacuations in place.

July 6 at 4:00 PM

The acreage burned by the Cape Horn Fire remains at 2,000 acres according to the latest update at the Cape Horn incident page at Inciweb that I saw a little while ago. Gov. Butch Otter has declared Bonner and Kootenai Counties disaster areas according to this Spokesman-Review article on the fire (July 6, 12:50 PM).

For other information on this fire see:

Coeur d'Alene Press (July 6, 12:15 AM)
KXLY report (July 6, 12:00 PM)
KXLY photo gallery

This fire caught my eye this morning, so I'll update this post as the situation warrants. I am reminded that firefighters on the ground and in the air are working hard to contain this fire. I understand from the media reports that I have linked that it was windy yesterday and winds may continue today. I believe that air operations, wind allowing, continued today

Perhaps this fire will never make the national news; I hope not for when that happens it is not a good thing. But this fire, like all other wildfires, is of local concern. And that matters.

July 6, 2015 at 10:40 AM

When I was checking various sources around the web this morning, I read about the Cape Horn Fire that was first reported the afternoon of July 5th at the south end of Lake Pend Orielle in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. I understand that evacuations are in place and airtankers and helicopters worked the fire. According to the latest update available from the Cape Horn incident page at Inciweb the fire has burned about 2,000 acres as of about 9:20 AM with a report of six structures being destroyed. Inciweb incident pages are updated periodically while the wildfire is burning and what I write about here may not be the latest information.

For more information about the Cape Horn Fire including a video with footage of a tanker working the fire, see this report (from July 5th) from KXLY out of Spokane-Coeur d'Alene.

Idaho wildfires update

Video that I originally embedded here is no longer available and the link is removed (8/2/15)

Continuing to follow up on the wildfires burning in Idaho, see my earlier posts on Aug 13 and Aug 15, there continue to be a few large wildfires burning in Idaho, see the Idaho page on inci web for current information. These are the three largest fires:

Beaver Creek Fire -- 92,754 acres burned -- 6% contained
Elk Complex -- 125,033 acres burned --  50% contained
Pony Complex -- 149,384 acres burned -- 90% contained

My thoughts and prayers are extended to all affected by the wildfires in Idaho and the groundpounders and their friends in the air. I understand that there are tankers and helos working the fires

From the Idaho Statesmen: article dated Aug 17, photo gallery, and video

KBOI report from August 16 on evacuations resulting from the Beaver Creek Fire.