People lined up in front of Seeley Lake Elementary for the community information meeting as smoke from the Rice Ridge Fire billows up behind the school.
The current fire perimeter.
Members of the Incident Management Team and local officials updated the community Monday, July 31.
Nearly 600 people packed SLE to hear the fire updates.
SEELEY LAKE – Nearly 600 people packing the gym at Seeley Lake Elementary for a fire meeting Monday, July 31. Members of the Forest Service, the Incident Management Team and other local officials addressed the attendees.
The meeting served primarily as an update for the Rice Ridge Fire that is burning approximately three miles northeast of Seeley Lake. The fire started on July 24, but in the last 24 hours the fire exploded from 60 acres to 1,994 acres.
During the day Monday, the fire grew 300-500 acres. The fire is burning southeast of the point of origin on Rice Ridge, crossed over FR 4353 towards Morrell Falls and Pyramid Pass trailheads and continues to move south.
The fire has been managed by a Type 3 Incident Management Team but will be replaced by a Type 2 Team within 48 hours.
The Incident Management team provides support and resources for the fire in the areas of logistics, financial, operations and planning.
"We look at fire modeling, what we think the fire is going to do," said Andy Mandel, the Type 3 incident commander.
A management action point has been set up at Seeley Creek. Should the fire burn to the action point, the management team will begin conversations with local law enforcement.
Road closures: Cottonwood Lakes road closed at Seeley Creek Nordic Trails to the Rich Ranch. Auggie/Morrell Cutoff Road; Rice Ridge; Camp Creek; Richmond Ridge; Sawyer Creek; Clearwater Lake Loop as it head towards Richmond Ridge.
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The Liberty Fire, which started on July 15, has grown more than 2,000 acres and crossed onto DNRC protection. At 8 p.m. tonight a Type 1 Incident Management Team from California will be taking over from the Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes.
The extreme fire growth prompted Missoula County Sheriff's Office to alert nearly 170 residents to a pre-evacuation warning around the Placid Lake area.
Road Closures: Archibald Loop; Spook Lake; Beaver Creek to Jocko Lakes; Finley Road towards Boles Meadow; South Placid; the left turn from the Turkey Tracks.
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The Missoula County Sheriff's Department also updated the community on the pre-evacuation warnings that have been put into effect in the Placid Lake area.
Residents were told to start preparing for a potential short notice evacuation if necessary.
"It's time to get all your stuff in order," Deputy Heath Hanson. "If you've got pets, make accommodations for them... if it's important to you, get it moved somewhere else and get ready."
The fire meeting was live-streamed on Facebook on the Lolo National Forest page. Visit https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=lolo%20national%20forest
Info can also be found at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/state/27/
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