Fire burns dozens of structures in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Pigeon Forge fire map
Map showing the approximate location of the fire near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, as detected by the MODIS satellite at 3:45 a.m. ET, March 18, 2013.

UPDATE at 7 p.m. ET, March 18, 2013:

The fire is contained, thanks in part to some rain on Monday. Most of the firefighters have been released. The number of structures burned has been raised to 50. Below is a video from Knoxville’s WATE broadcast early Monday morning:

 

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Originally published at 10 a.m. Monday at 10 a.m. ET

A fire in eastern Tennessee has burned hundreds of acres and approximately 35 large rental structures in Pigeon Forge between Gatlinburg and Knoxville. In what looks like a carbon copy of Saturday’s fire in Horry County, South Carolina, the fire began in a structure and then spread to the vegetation, eventually igniting dozens of large rental cabins. In photos, the structures appear to have multiple guest units. Black Hawk helicopters from the Tennessee National Guard assisted firefighters by dropping water dipped out of Douglas Lake and other sources.

Estimates on the size of the fire, which is burning outside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, range from 145 to 300 acres.


Thanks go out to Bill and Dick

An afternoon at Wind Cave

Wind Cave NP

The March winds were blowing almost like a Santa Ana in Wind Cave National Park Sunday afternoon. When I was taking these photos I had to brace myself by leaning against something or by getting down on one knee to minimize camera movement. At one point the wind drove a few little hard kernels of snow, “corn snow” into the crevices of my coat and the camera, but that only lasted for a few seconds.

Wind Cave NP

Wind Cave NP

Wind Cave NP

 

Dozens of structures destroyed in South Carolina brush fire

Saturday afternoon a wildfire in Horry County, South Carolina spread to a single-family home and then ignited and burned 26 buildings containing 109 housing units. All are considered a total loss.

On Sunday a spokesperson for the South Carolina Forestry Commission said the fire’s point of origin was near power lines.

Ten search and rescue teams made up of county police and firefighters went through the community looking for possible victims.

Red Flag Warnings, March 17, 2013

Red Flag Warnings, 3-17-2013

Portions of New Mexico, Texas, and Colorado are under Red Flag Warnings today.

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The map above was current as of 2:20 p.m. MT on Sunday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts. For the most current data, visit this NWS site.

Galena Fire causes evacuations near Fort Collins, Colorado

Galena Fire 3-15-2013
Galena Fire, Friday night, 3-15-2013. Photo by @ashleytrailrun

UPDATE at 1:39 p.m. MT, March 18, 2013: Updated information, including an accurate map, can be found HERE.

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UPDATE at 3:30 p.m. MT, March 16, 2013:

Evacuations lifted — Larimer County officials distributed this information within the last hour:

All evacuations for the Galena fire will be lifted tonight at 8:00 p.m. Residents in the affected area will be allowed to return home at that time. No credentials will be needed. Those residents will remain on pre-evacuation status and should be prepared to leave if necessary.

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UPDATE at 11:50 a.m. MT, March 16, 2013:

The Galena fire west of Fort Collins, Colorado, now managed by a Type 3 incident management team, was fairly quiet overnight and did not have any significant movement. Larimer County authorities are estimating the size at 750 to 1,000 acres but have not accurately mapped the perimeter. The fire is partially confined by last summer’s 87,000-acre High Park Fire on the west and north sides and Horsetooth Reservoir on the east, but there is still potential for fire movement on the south side.  (map of High Park fire)

Mandatory evacuation notifications were sent yesterday for the area west of Horsetooth Reservoir and those evacuations remain in effect today. As of last night all residents of the Soldier Canyon Estates area were allowed back into their homes.

The weather forecast for the area predicts a 30 percent chance of precipitation on Saturday. As this is written, radar is detecting scattered showers east, west, and south of the fire. The relative humidity should bottom out in the mid-thirties today and the winds should be 5-10 mph gusting to 20 late in the afternoon. Sunday is a different story, however, with a forecast for 10-26 mph winds gusting to 40 with a 24 percent relative humidity.

Resources assigned to the fire today include one Type 2 helicopter, four hand crews, and an assortment of engines.

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Originally posted at 11 p.m. MT, March 15, 2013

The Galena Fire west of Fort Collins, Colorado forced some residents to evacuate as the fire burned near Horsetooth Reservoir and Charles A. Lory State Park on Friday. At 4:30 p.m. Larimer County officials estimated the fire had burned about 800 acres.

As of 8:40 p.m. the spread of the fire had slowed. Hand crews were actively working the north side of the fire and parts of the west flank. Engines were assigned to the south side near Inlet Bay.

Firefighters requested air tankers and helicopters but none were available except for one small helicopter, according to The Coloradoan, but strong winds on Friday may have made it difficult to operate any aircraft over the fire. The relative humidity in the area has been extremely low, with the maximum humidity early Friday morning only reaching up to 22 percent. Friday afternoon it got as low as 15 percent while the winds gusted in the mid-twenties.

Saturday’s weather will be more in favor of the firefighters, with a minimum relative humidity of 41 percent, moderate winds of three to seven mph, and a 30 percent chance of light rain.

Friday afternoon firefighters contained a second smaller fire near Eddy Lane in the community of LaPorte.

The map below shows the approximate location of the Galena fire west of Horsetooth Reservoir, and the smaller fire near LaPorte, north and west of Fort Collins. The red areas represent heat detected by a satellite.

Map of Galena Fire, 335 pm MT March 15, 2012

 

Paracargo, another method for delivering supplies to firefighters

ParacargoA McCall smokejumper stars in this video that promotes the concept of using paracargo to deliver supplies and equipment to wildland firefighters in very remote areas.

UPDATE March 18, 2013: Since we first posted the NIFC Paracargo video on March 15, the BLM at NIFC has removed it from YouTube twice and replaced it. Below we have embedded it for the third time. If later you see below “This video has been removed”, it will mean that the BLM at NIFC has removed it a third time.