We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Embers still burn on the charred hillside of one of more than a half dozen wildfires in Blaine County this past week. Firefighters from Chinook and Fort Belknap battled the blazes beginning Thursday afternoon. With assistance from the DNRC and BLM the fires were put out by Sunday evening.
Fire season is definitely upon us here along the Hi-line. This past week a number of fires forced local volunteer fire departments and landowners, as well as State and Federal officials, to jump into action to extinguish a number of blazes in Blaine County.
The majority of fires were in southern Blaine County with the biggest being the Snake Point Wildfire near the Missouri River Breaks burning 88 acres in all. There were six wildfires of note in southern Blaine County, the others being: Middle Coulee Wildfire (0.45, acres burned); Hedges Creek Wildfire (7.5); Rye Coulee Wildfire (0.1); Bullwacker Trail Wildfire, (0.64); Blue Heaven Wildfire (0.5). In addition there have been a number of small grass fires in Blaine County and on the Fort Belknap Reservation as well.
Fortunately the quick response from our local volunteer fire departments, landowners and neighbors have kept any significant fire damage from happening but continued RED FLAG Fire warnings from the National Weather Service means everyone still needs to do their part to keep a major disaster from taking place.
These fires were all started by lightning strikes from a storm earlier in the week, embers from the strikes smoldered for a time before eventually igniting to start the fires. Fire crews were on site battling the blazes from Thursday afternoon to Sunday evening. Fort Belknap took care of the Blue Heaven Fire located on Timber Ridge Road while the CVFD, along with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) responded to the others.
Bill Mangold provided an incredible hand to crews on site as he helped get supplies needed to get the water tender back up and running. Bill went above and beyond, working after hours and opening up his business to make this happen. In addition Mark Burkhartsmeyer allowed the CVFD use of a county pickup and slip tank to get gas to our trucks and pumps that were on scene. This assistance is always greatly appreciated.
Firefighters on scene don't have the luxury of stopping, heading to town to get a bite to eat or something to drink, and having these items on site is a huge help to firefighters everywhere.
Thankfully in Blaine County there is always good hearted people looking to help out. The Chinook Eagles headquartered a drop off for Gatorade, water and sandwiches that could be delivered (No mayonnaise or any condiments to ensure freshness). Several folks made monetary donations to the CVFD account at Finley's as well to help with groceries and supplies.
July and August are typically the regions driest seasons as well as the hottest. This year we have experienced excessive heat and thunderstorms that contain lightning are happening several times a week. Several of these storms contain little moisture, if any at all, leading to an even greater fire danger. The 30 day weather outlook shows more hot days with little moisture expected so extra precautions need to be taken.
Officials at every level, local state, federal ask that anyone recreating take extra precaution to do so safely and with the utmost regard to fire prevention and safety. We are currently under Stage 5 Fire Restriction and all open flames are banned in the county.
The need for our local fire departments to have necessary supplies on hand is at its peek during this time. Supplies however are needed throughout the year and if you would like to help out, your local volunteer fire department is always in need of non-perishables, water, Gatorade, Ziploc bags or monetary donations.
Blaine County relies on its volunteer force to combat our local fires and those organizations include the Chinook Volunteer Fire Department (CVFD), Harlem Volunteer Fire Department, Hogeland Volunteer Fire Department, Lloyd Volunteer Fire Department, South Blaine Fire Company Organization, Turner Volunteer Fire Department and the Fort Belknap Volunteer Fire Department.
For up to date information, the Chinook Volunteer Fire Department Facebook page contains all the latest fire restrictions from the state as well as weather outlook and red flag warnings both locally and statewide.
