CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon has issued an Executive Order declaring an emergency in response to multiple fires currently burning in Wyoming.
According to the Governor’s Office, the declaration will help the state access additional federal firefighting resources. The measure also will direct the Office of Homeland Security to take action to coordinate state and federal resources in response to the fires. When requested, the Wyoming National Guard’s Adjutant General is authorized to activate National Guard members to provide support, pursuant to this Executive Order.
“Once again, wildfires in Wyoming are creating significant impacts on our communities and threatening lives and property,” Governor Gordon said in the press release. “We will continue to ensure state resources are available to those affected by these fires.”
As of August 18, the Red Canyon Fire has burned more than 95,000 acres, resulting in multiple evacuation orders. The wildland fire continues to threaten private and public property in Hot Springs, Washakie and Fremont Counties, per the Governor’s Office. The Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team Two has assumed management of the fire, which was ignited by lightning on August 13.
In addition to the Red Canyon Fire, the Spring Creek Fire near Ten Sleep has burned more than 3,500 acres and the Sleeper Ranch Fire near Meeteetse has burned more than 20,000 acres. Both fires continue to threaten private and public property.
On Friday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved Wyoming’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant authorizing the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Red Canyon fire. The authorization states that the FEMA grant can cover 75% of the state’s eligible firefighting costs toward managing, mitigating and controlling designated fires. This grant does not provide assistance to individual home or business owners and does not cover other infrastructure damage caused by the fire.
The most recent update on the Red Canyon Fire, including evacuation areas and closures, can be found here. Regular updates on the Red Canyon Fire will be published to the fire’s InciWeb page.
Fire danger for all of Teton County, the National Elk Refuge, Bridger-Teton National Forest, Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park remains “very high,” causing stage 1 fire restrictions to be implemented to protect public lands and communities.
