Wildfire burns 25 acres in Anchorage, Alaska

M.L.K. Fire Anchorage
Smoke rises from a wildfire in East Anchorage on Tuesday afternoon, July 2, 2019. Photo by Jason Jordet/Alaska Division of Forestry.

(Originally published at 3:53 p.m. July 3, 2019 ADT)

Two 20-person crews and additional firefighters from the Alaska Division of Forestry are working Wednesday to contain the 25-acre M.L.K. Fire in East Anchorage, Alaska.

The fire which was reported at 4:28 p.m. on Tuesday, spread quickly in or near the Bureau of Land Management’s Campbell Tract but Wednesday afternoon it is holding at 25 acres. On Tuesday three air tankers and a helicopter dropped water and retardant helping to slow the spread of the fire. Smokejumpers worked into the early morning hours Wednesday looking for hotspots. Firefighters also placed a hose line around the fire to provide a water supply to extinguish any hot spots found.

M.L.K. Fire Anchorage
A squad of firefighters from Mat-Su Area Forestry walk into the M.L.K. Fire to begin mop up operations on Wednesday morning, July 3, 2019. Photo by Stephanie Bishop/Alaska Division of Forestry.

Tuesday afternoon the Baker River Interagency Hotshot Crew from Washington responded to the fire from the Swan Lake Fire on the Kenai Peninsula and the Gannett Glacier Type 2 Initial Attack Crew was pulled from a fire near Lake Louise to assist with containment. A task force of four engines was also brought up from the Swan Lake Fire. A total of 66 personnel are assigned to the fire.

Today the two crews and the firefighters from the Mat-Su Area forestry office are focused on creating a chain saw line – cutting a swath through the vegetation around the perimeter of the fire to keep it from expanding. Fire managers expect to complete containment this evening.

M.L.K. Fire Anchorage
The MLK Fire burning in East Anchorage on Tuesday, July 2. BLM/AFS photo.

(Most of the text above is courtesy of the BLM/AFS)

There were no reports of injuries or burned structures. Soon after it started a few dozen people, including part of a mobile home park, were ordered to evacuate, but that was cancelled by 7 p.m.

The video below posted by the Alaska Division of Forestry, shows impressive flames that firefighters reported to be 60-feet long.

The blaze burned primarily in Black Spruce but slowed considerably as it moved into hardwoods.

M.L.K. Fire Anchorage
Firefighters from Mat-Su Area Forestry haul hose and other supplies down a trail to access and mop up the M.L.K. Fire in East Anchorage on Wednesday, July 3, 2019. Photo by Stephanie Bishop/Alaska Division of Forestry.

 

The article was revised to correctly indicate that the Baker River Hotshots’ home base is in Washington.

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Steven. Typos or errors, report them HERE.

Four crews complete their fire assignments in Alberta

hotshot fire crew Alberta
Snake River IHC. Alberta, June, 2019.

@AlbertaWildfire sent out a tweet today with four pictures saying goodby to four crews that had been assisting in the Province:

Today we say goodbye to our US firefighters that assisted us at the McMillan Complex in the Slave Lake Forest area. Thank you to the Prineville, Logan, Union and Snake River Hotshot Crews; we appreciate the support. Safe travels and all the best back home! #ABfire #ABwildfire

Click on the photos to see larger versions.

hotshot fire crew Alberta
Logan IHC. Alberta, June, 2019.

(Let us know which crew is which and we’ll add the crew names in captions. UPDATE — got them all identified. Thanks!)

hotshot fire crew Alberta
Union IHC. Alberta, June, 2019.
Prineville IHC Alberta
Prineville IHC. Alberta, June, 2019.

In addition to a number of U.S. firefighters in Alberta, at least 11 crews from the lower 48 states are assigned in Alaska according to the Alaska Interagency Coordination Center: Los Padres, Lewis and Clark, Chief Mountain, Golden Eagles, Crane Valley, Idaho Panhandle, Lakeview, Redmond, Vale, Wolf Creek, and Winema.

Air tankers and Type 1 crews dispatched to Oregon Lakes Fire in Alaska

Chena Hotshots Oregon Lakes Fire
Chena Hotshots unload their gear at the Oregon Lakes Fire, May 1,2 2019.

Sunday afternoon a burnout operation being conducted by a Type 2 hand crew on the Oregon Lakes Fire 11 miles south of Delta Junction, Alaska slopped over a fireline and burned 240 unplanned acres. Firefighters, aided by heavy equipment and a helicopter, were burning grass along a fuel break about two miles north of a military training impact area.

Two helicopters and both of the state air tankers that were on contract were used on the slopover, including Tanker 42, a Convair 580, that was on the first day of its contract.

It is very rare for retardant to be needed on a fire in Alaska this early in the year. The water-scooping Fire Bosses are not yet on contract, but would have been well suited for the job with the nearby Delta River serving as a water source.

In addition, two Type 1 Hotshot crews were mobilized Sunday, Chena and Midnight Sun.

Oregon Lakes Fire burnout slopover
This small photo provided by the Incident Management Team shows the burning operation in progress. At some point it spotted across the line, burning an unplanned 240 additional acres.

A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire to prevent outside aircraft, including military aircraft, from interfering with the suppression efforts. Part of the TFR is over restricted military airspace.

The fire was reported April 30 and so far has been burning in an area that is off-limits to firefighters and low-flying fire suppression aircraft due to the likelihood of unexploded ordnance on the ground. It is burning mostly in tall, dry grass and downed trees from the 2013 Mississippi Fire west of the braided Delta River.

The Incident Management Team reports that the fire has burned 5,732 acres.

map Oregon Lakes Fire
This is the most current map of the Oregon Lakes Fire provided by the Incident Management Team. The perimeter was updated May 8, 2019.

Oregon Lakes fire spreads during Red Flag Warning

Oregon Lakes Fire
Oregon Lakes Fire, May 6, 2019. BLM Alaska Fire Service photo.

After being virtually dormant for a couple of days a Red Flag Warning, sunshine, and strong wind brought the Oregon Lakes Fire back to life Tuesday. As of Monday night the fire had burned 6,670 acres 10 miles southwest of Delta Junction, Alaska but judging from smoke seen in Tuesday’s satellite photo that number has likely increased.

A hole in the clouds allowed the sun to warm and dry the fuels that got exposed to some rain earlier, and also a satellite took advantage to get an image for the first time since May 1.

Satellite photo Oregon Lakes Fire
Smoke can be seen in a satellite photo from May 7, 2019 showing the Oregon Lakes Fire 10 miles southwest of Delta Junction Alaska. The red dots indicate heat.

The weather forecast below for Delta Junction shows 30 mph south winds tapering off Tuesday night and a 46 percent chance of precipitation early Wednesday morning.

Delta Junction weather forecast
Weather forecast for Delta Junction from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday afternoon, precipitation and wind.

The remote fire was reported at about 1 p.m. on April 30 and so far has been burning in an area that is off-limits to firefighters and low-flying fire suppression aircraft due to the likelihood of unexploded ordnance on the ground. It is burning mostly in tall, dry grass and downed trees from the 2013 Mississippi Fire on the west side of the braided Delta River.

Below is an excerpt from a Tuesday night update from the Incident Management Team:

The IMT will work with the BLM AFS Military Fire Management Zone, the U.S. Army Alaska Garrison, BLM Eastern Interior Field Office and the Alaska Division of Forestry (DOF) to determine the best course of action, especially with the forecasted increase in temperatures and wind. It is in a limited protection area and is not immediately threatening any structures, military targets or valuable resources. However, because it is burning in the Delta River drainage with known challenging weather patterns that could cause the fire to persist throughout the summer, the team is being activated to plan for an opportunity to launch suppression tactics once the fire moves out of the military impact areas. There will be an increase of people in the area as the IMT sets up a command post and stages firefighting resources in Delta Junction.

NPS aircraft crashes in Alaska — pilot rescued

A Cessna 185 operated by the National Park Service crashed north of Nome, Alaska April 15 in a remote area within the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve on the Seward Peninsula. The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center received an emergency locator transmitter signal from the aircraft at about 9 a.m.

The Alaska Region Communications Center based in Denali National Park was monitoring the mission and when the pilot did not check in as scheduled, was able to use its automated flight following technology to relay accurate identification of the pilot as well as the exact location of the airplane to the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center.

The pilot, the sole occupant on the mission from Kotdzebue to Nome, was able to communicate with an overhead aircraft and reported that he had minor injuries. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service pilot from Nome attempted to overfly the area later in the morning, but was turned back due to poor weather conditions.

pavehawk
File photo. An Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk prepares to demonstrate in-flight refueling from an HC-130J Super Hercules during the joint forces demonstration at the Arctic Thunder Open House, July 1, 2018 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Valerie Halbert)

An HH-60 Pavehawk helicopter and a C-130 refueling tanker responded from Joint-Base Elmendorf-Richardson with pararescuemen but initially were unable to access the area due to weather — strong winds and blowing snow.

A ground-based Search and Rescue team in Shishmaref could not mobilize because of white-out conditions.

Later in the day the Pavehawk was able to land at the site. The crew extricated the pilot and flew him to Elmendorf and then to Providence Hospital in Anchorage, where he was treated and released.

According to Alaska Air National Guard Senior Master Sgt. Evan Budd, the downed pilot was located with adequate food and survival gear to wait out the storm despite his injuries.

Alaska emergency firefighters to undergo medical exams starting in November

Alaska EFF firefighters
The Kobuk River #2 Type 2 EFF Crew working on a fire in the Lower 48 in 2018. AFS photo.

The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service in partnership with the Department of Interior Medical Standards Program (DOI MSP) will soon provide medical exams to federal Emergency Firefighters (EFF). The goal of the exams is to increase safety by identifying pre-existing conditions that could be aggravated by the arduous duty of wildland firefighting.

The medical exams will be provided in approximately 28 Alaska villages through mobile medical units and by scheduled appointments at 18 facilities throughout the state.

Starting in November EFFs in Alaska who are hired on an as-needed basis will need medical exams once every three years and self-certify in between years. The medical screening established by the DOI MSP will screen EFFs for any disqualifying medical conditions prior to participating in the Work Capacity Test (WCT), otherwise known as the pack test. Only wildland firefighters performing arduous duties are required to undergo medical exams and pass the WCT.

Schedules for the exams will be posted on the BLM AFS EFF webpage .

For the past two years, Alaska EFFs were granted exemptions to these medical screening requirements. The first phase of implementation of the medical exams began in 2015 and only included regularly employed Department of the Interior wildland firefighters. Applying the requirements to Alaska EFFs was originally planned to begin in 2017, but implementation was delayed until measures were in place to provide mobile units in rural Alaska to conduct the medical examinations. The exams do not include drug testing or affect State of Alaska EFFs.

There is no cost to the EFF for the examination, however, if the individual chooses a location other than their local village BLM AFS will not cover the associated travel costs. After the exam is completed, a determination will be made regarding the candidate’s eligibility to participate in the pack test and the arduous duty of wildland firefighting.

The BLM AFS provides wildland fire management for the Department of the Interior and Native Corporation lands in Alaska and provides oversight of the BLM Alaska aviation program. Firefighter safety and the safety of the public are core values and are fundamental in all areas of wildland fire management.

For more information, EFF candidates can email AFS_EFF@blm.gov or call EFF Program at 1-833-532-8810 or (907)356-5897.