(Fremont County, WY) – The Forest Service issued a Road and Trail Closure Order (# 04-03-24-314) for the Fish Creek and Pack Trail Fire area, in effect starting today October 1, according to the latest update from the U.S Forest Service Bridger-Teton National Forest.
The Order was signed by Chad Hudson and Ken Coffin (the Forest Supervisors for the Bridger-Teton National Forest and the Shoshone National Forest), and will go through October 15, unless rescinded.
The Order has very detailed locations for the closures, and can be viewed in full, here.
While this morning’s update originally totaled the acreage for the fires at 17,589 (Pack Trail) and 25,081 (Fish Creek), a post shared on the U.S. Forest Service-Bridger-Teton National Forest Facebook page this afternoon states that, “Additional data review now indicates slight acreage increases,” with “Fish Creek at 25,3251 acres and Pack Trail at 18,525 acres.”
Near critical fire weather conditions are expected throughout the day, as wind gusts of 25 mph are likely along higher terrain and the Highway 26 corridor, which means smoke may continue to impact travel along the highway. At this time there are no official highway closures or advisories in the area.
The update goes on to state that in term of fire behavior, activity moderated yesterday after Sunday’s push, which was fueled by strong winds ahead of the cold dry front that moved in.
Today’s fire behavior has not been as extreme as the previous two days, the update continues, but has remained active. Another wind event is forecasted for Wednesday which could affect fire behavior and produce more smoke.
The previously issued evacuations and evacuation alert levels remain in place, and due to current conditions and expected weather, residents and visitors are urged to exercise extreme caution with fire or possible ignition sources, including campfires, as well as stay out of posted closed areas and avoid areas around the fire impacted zones.
The breakdowns for each fire are below.
Pack Trail Fire
There are currently 149 personnel on scene for the Pack Trail Fire, which is 0% contained/competed.
Because of diminished winds, numerous aircraft were able to assist in yesterday’s operations, the update states, and the fire was largely halted southeast of Lava Mountain and along the Lava Mountain Burn Scar of 2016.
The update goes on to say that firefighters scouted potential containment features around Lava Mountain, in the Trout Creek/Warm Springs drainages, and along the 645 Road above Lava Creek, and that additional resources have been ordered/reassigned from the nearby Fish Creek Fire to help strengthen structure protection along the Highway 26 corridor.
Members of the California Team 10 complex incident management began arriving today, the update continues, and have begun the transition with the current team managing the fire.
California Team 10 is expected to assume command of the fire late Wednesday, October 2 or early Thursday, October 3, after a full day of shadowing the current team.
Fish Creek Fire
There are currently 115 personnel on scene for the Fish Creek Fire, which is 87% contained/competed.
There was minimal fire behavior on the Fish Creek Fire yesterday, the update continues, with isolated areas of fire activity, primarily along the northwest, south and southwest perimeter.
The update goes on to inform that helicopter bucket work was done in the Split Rock Creek area at the head of Two Ocean Basin to reduce hot spots, and that fire activity today is expected to be limited to backing, smoldering and isolated torching.
Crews today will:
- Continue to monitor potential threats to Highway 26 and other critical values at risk
- Track fire activity in the Cottonwood Drainage area and along the fire’s edge
- Work on suppression repair on forest system roads in the fire area including grading the Hatchet and Flagstaff Roads
