JACKSON, Wyo. — Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) has shared an update on the Fish Creek Fire, which has grown to cover 17,912 acres in the Jackson Ranger District as of Wednesday, Sept. 4.
Spot fires detected northeast of US26 led to an emergency evacuation of residents in the area on Tuesday afternoon. According to BTNF, fire crews have responded to and suppressed spot fires in multiple locations, working overnight to keep up with the spread. US26/287 remains closed to traffic as thick smoke pervades the area and firefighters are working along the roadside. There is no estimated reopening time, BTNF said.
On Tuesday night, aircraft equipped with an infrared camera mapped the fire size, revealing that the fire had increased “by 2,406 acres over the last two days,” BTNF posted.
“The west and north sides of the fire that had been active received some light amounts of rainfall which subdued fire activity for only a brief period,” BTNF noted in Wednesday’s update. “Crews and equipment continued to work on the Flagstaff Road indirect control line on the north side. The south side of the fire continue to be monitored and has remained secure.”
Protection plans around Brooks Lake Lodge and Pinnacle Drive are in place if necessary, including pumps, hose and sprinklers handled by structure protection crews, BTNF said.
“A full shift of night operations began last night to keep monitoring the fire activity and be ready to respond if fire threatens the critical values at risk identified around Brooks Lake, Pinnacle and Breccia Drives,” the update said. “Firing operations used to slow or stop the advancing fire continued throughout the night along Highway 26 east to the 357 Road and south to the Pilot Knob area.”
Wednesday’s forecast of cooler temperatures and higher relative humidity “will moderate fire behavior,” according to BTNF. “Firefighters are expecting mainly surface fire in the heavy dead and down fuels as well as single tree or group tree torching. Given the condition of the fuels, downwind spotting is likely from any torching trees. If spotting occurs, the probability of success is high to contain them quickly with aerial and ground resources.”
