Rice Ridge Morning Update (this is a repost because the original was deleted unintentionally): The next community meeting will be 6pm Monday night in Seeley Lake. Location to be determined. The Sheriff's Office did escorts yesterday for people to access their property in the evacuated area. Sign up at the Sheriff's information trailer in Cory's Valley Market parking lot.
The Rice Ridge Fire grew another 3,000 acres yesterday and is up to 40,164 acres. It remains 18% contained. There are currently 769 fire personnel assigned to the fire.
YESTERDAY: Northwesterly winds were generally favorable for keeping critical perimeter areas in check and allowing crews to conduct strategic burning operations to improve fire lines. Three Type 1 helicopters and heavy equipment were used to suppress spots in front of the perimeter in the Sawyer Creek drainage. Firing and mop-up operations were conducted along the East Morrell road in the Morrel Creek area to remove fuels and improve the perimeter. Night shift crews located and lined a 20'x20' spot fire detected approximately ¾ of a mile northeast of the airport landing strip. Firing operations were conducted to remove unburned fuels along the perimeter between the Morrel Lookout and the Cottonwood Lakes road. The southwest fire perimeter continued to back downhill towards the road in the Cottonwood Lakes area. Crews began mopping up spot fires which have been detected south of the Cottonwood Lakes road and mop up operations were conducted to cool hot spots inside the perimeter north of the Cottonwood Lakes road and west of the Little Shanley Creek road.
TODAY: The northwestern flank of the fire will be re-assessed to determine suitable indirect line locations. In the Morrell Creek drainage, crews will work to mop up and improve fire lines from yesterday's firing operations. The area will be gridded to search for additional spots that may be in the area. Crews will look for opportunities to conduct firing operations to reduce fuels and improve fire line conditions north of Cottonwood Lakes Road and along the northwest fire perimeter. The Cottonwood Lakes road will be monitored for spotting activity south of the road. Crews will assess the road in Black Canyon for opportunities to conduct firing operations to check the fire's eastward progress. Heavy equipment will be utilized to remove fuels and improve line along the Cottonwood Lakes road east of current fire perimeter. Two Type 1 and one Type 3 helicopters will be assigned to the fire for conducting water drops and aerial observation today Structure protection efforts will continue in the Double Arrow Ranch, Hwy 83 corridor and Kozy Korner areas.
There is a high pressure building over the Northern Rockies today. Ridge top winds will start to increase today from the southwest and continue to increase through Sunday. Maximum temperatures will be 88F-90F and winds 15mph -18mph today. There is a fire weather watch for tomorrow (Sunday) for high winds and low humidity. East winds are expected early Monday.
EVACUATIONS: The Missoula County Sheriff has issued multiple evacuation ORDERS and WARNINGS. The current map and description is posted on Inciweb. A shelter site is located at the UCC Church, 405 University Avenue, Missoula MT. Anyone seeking shelter may call the Red Cross of Montana at 1-800-272-6668. Residents of the area should sign up for Smart911 at https://www.smart911.com/ to ensure they receive messages about potential evacuations.
CLOSURES: Closures are in effect for the Horseshoe Hills area, the Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area, and surrounding Montana DNRC and BLM lands. An existing closure order in effect for the areas surrounding the Rice Ridge Fire is posted on Inciweb. Big Larch Campground, Big Larch boat launch, Seeley Lake Campground boat launch, Canoe Trail and Seeley Lake waters are closed due
to aerial operations related to Rice Ridge Fire suppression efforts.
Important: Drones are prohibited in the fire vicinity &have the potential to shut down all air operations. A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) remains in place (http://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_7_9440.html).
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