The Pine Ridge Fire, which at one point had us wondering if we would need to evacuate, is now contained. Here is part of the press release that describes the current situation:
Current Situation
| Total Personnel | 213 |
|---|---|
| Size | 13,920 acres |
| Percent Contained | 100% |
| Fuels Involved | Timber with grass understory, Pinion-Juniper, sage brush |
| Fire Behavior | Smoldering |
| Significant Events | 100% Contained at 1800 Wednesday, July 4 |
Outlook
| Planned Actions | Transfer of command to the Type 4 organization will occur at 0600 7/5/12. Suppression actions will include continued mop up and patrol. |
|---|
So, aside from mop-up operations, for all practical purposes the fire is no longer a danger. That is a relief! Still there seems to be no rest for the weary. Pam and I returned home from a land hunt trip yesterday, July 4, and thought we noticed a difference in the smoke pattern. The smell of smoke was stronger than it had been in a couple days. Reason: Another fire in the area. This one is not big enough (yet) to get listed on the web page at www.iciweb.org, but here is what the latest press release has to say about it:
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July 5, 2012
11:15 a.m.
Fire Works Firefighters on July 4th
De Beque, Colo. – Lightning caused firefighters to work on the Third Water Springs Fire approximately 25 miles up Roan Creek Road on Kimball Mountain northwest of De Beque.
The fire was reported at 1:15 pm yesterday. It is currently estimated to be roughly 150 acres in size.
There are seven engines, one water tender, five Type II crews, air attack, and two helicopters (one Type II and one Type III) on scene this morning. The fire is burning in a steep, mountainous area of Garfield County in grass and pinion-juniper vegetation. The fire is burning on Bureau of Land Management public lands.
There is no current containment on this fire.
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Our prevailing winds are from the northwest so the fire could move toward us should the winds pick up. The one saving grace is the weather; humidity is up a bit, winds are down, and the forcast for the next few days includes a better-than-even chance of rain. We are not worried about this fire, but cautious just the same.
I’ll have more on the land hunt trip in my next post, which I hope to get done this weekend.
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!
One more time…
Are all of these fires caused by lightening? Were there storms/rain with the lightening, or was it heat lightening.
Re the initial fire – is the electricity also out of the danger zone?
wow–that was quite the deal!
thank goodness you are all okay and didn’t suffer any damage?