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Tag: White Draw Fire

Wyoming: a little rains slows the Oil Creek Fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 1 Comment on Wyoming: a little rains slows the Oil Creek Fire
Oil Fire briefing
Morning briefing at the Oil Fire. Photo by WIMT 5.

Morning briefings for firefighters about to go out on the fireline usually involve half-awake men and women cradling cups of coffee standing around a truck or a hastily-erected plywood bulletin board onto which a map has been taped, as the fire overhead tells them what they will be doing that day. But if the Incident Command Post is located at a county fairgrounds, more elaborate accommodations may be available, such as the grandstand in the photo above.

The Oil Creek fire received a small amount of rain Thursday night, but enough to qualify as a “wetting rain”, which should slow down the spread of the fire for a little while. A weather station in Newcastle about three miles away measured 0.02″. Most of the vigorous thunderstorms that prompted flash flood warnings for the White Draw fire area bypassed the Oil Creek Fire to the south.

The fire has grown to about 61,000 acres and is being fought by 719 personnel, 5 helicopters, 14 dozers, 6 water tenders, and 61 assorted wildland and structural engines.

InciWeb has more details about evacuations, which are being re-evaluated today.

South Dakota: Rain and flash flood warnings for White Draw Fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags ,

White Draw Fire

Firefighters on the White Draw fire near Edgemont, South Dakota received a present from mother nature Thursday night in the form of rain. Lots of it, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a flash flood warning. Between 8 and 9 p.m. almost three-quarters of an inch was measured at the Red Canyon weather station 1.5 miles east of the fire. Rain continued to fall until 2 a.m. Friday morning, bringing the total to 1.09″. Thunderstorms delivered the precipitation accompanied by strong winds, with one gust reaching 46 mph. Other weather stations in the area recorded rain amounts of 0.90″ to 1.33″.

There was a great deal of lightning in southwest South Dakota as well, but the widespread rain will reduce the number of new fire starts.

On Thursday the White Draw fire was 95 percent contained. Today they expect to reach 100% as some of the fire crews and engines are being demobilized.

Parker Peak Fire

This fire 2 miles east of the White Draw fire was 100 percent contained on Thursday. Today there will ten people assigned, working on three engines and one water tender.

Highlands Fire

Located about 14 miles southeast of Newcastle, WY and south of US Highway 16, the fire on Thursday remained at 394 acres and  95 percent containment.

South Dakota: White Draw Fire, Wednesday evening on scene update

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags ,
White Draw Fire, South Dakota,
White Draw Fire, looking south toward Red Canyon from Pilger Mountain Road, July 4, 2012. Photo by Bill Gabbert.

At 7:30 Wednesday evening I found myself out at the White Draw Fire, northeast of Edgemont, South Dakota. As of tonight, it is 80 percent contained and has burned 8,900 acres.

The firefighters have, at least for now, successfully stopped the spread of the fire on the north side. In the photo above, the fire on the ridge on the right (or west) side was checked at the edge of the timber with dozer lines and burn outs.

White Draw Fire, South Dakota,
White Draw fire looking south from Pilger Mountain Road, near Elbow Canyon Road, July 4, 2012. Photo by Bill Gabbert

The crews put some effort into preparation of the north side along Pilger Mountain Road before beginning the burnout. They used graders or dozers to scrape along the sides of the road, doubling or tripling the width of the effective fireline, and pruned trees and eliminated brush and other ladder fuels near the road. This reduced the chances of intense heat leading to spot fires across the road during the burnout. I saw where one spot fire occurred, but it was held to about 20 feet in diameter. Great job, folks!

South Dakota: White Draw, Highlands, and Parker Peak Fires

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 1 Comment on South Dakota: White Draw, Highlands, and Parker Peak Fires

Map of White Draw Fire

The map shows the perimeter of the White Draw fire as of 10:53 p.m. MT, July 3, 2012.

White Draw Fire

The White Draw Fire northeast of Edgemont, South Dakota has spread further north to Pilger Mountain Road. On Tuesday firefighters conducted burnouts to tie in roads and dozer lines to the edge of the fire. As of Tuesday night they held the fire on the north end at Pilger Mountain Road and on the west side at FDR 16/322/Elbow Canyon.

Here is an update provided by the Incident Management Team Wednesday morning:

Last night the containment on the White Draw Fire reached 60%. The night shift conducted patrol and mop up on areas where the day shift had completed burn out operations. White Draw operations today will concentrate mainly on mop up and strengthening the lines established by yesterday’s highly successful burn out.

Crews worked hard in difficult terrain and the high heat of the day to complete a complicated burn out operation. This operation required a high level of coordination with all divisions, landowners, and air operations.

The White Draw Fire is 7,800 acres. Currently, there are 382 personnel including three type 1 hand crews (20 people each), seven type 2 hand crews, 21 engines, 3 dozers, and six water tenders. 22 structures and 31 outbuildings continue to be threatened by the fire.

The information staff will be at the Edgemont Conoco Station from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. today to answer any questions from the public about the fires.

Parker Peak Fire

The fire is eight miles northeast of Edgemont, South Daktoa. As of Wednesday morning, the fire is 100% contained at 800 acres. Remaining on the fire are 57 personnel, including one Type 2 crew, nine engines, two water tenders, and one dozer. Five structures and two outbuildings continue to be threatened by the fire. Operations today will concentrate on mop up.

Highlands Fire

This fire 18 miles west of Custer, South Dakota, has burned 394 acres and is 95 percent contained. Information from the Incident Management Team Wednesday morning:

Mop up efforts on the Highland Fire went well over night. The crews were available to reach 95% containment. The fire is creeping and smoldering. Heavy smoke is present in the area from the combined fires burning in the area. The Highlands fire is putting up very little smoke at this time. A strike team of 7 engines remain on scene today as well as overhead. Some of engines will be available to assist with initial attack if need. We would like homeowners in the Custer Highlands area to know that we will remain on scene with this fire until the situation changes.

Objectives for today include, containing the fire within the existing constructed lines, and mop up around all structures, the perimeter, and interior islands while providing for firefighter and public safety.

 

South Dakota: White Draw and Parker Peak fires

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 1 Comment on South Dakota: White Draw and Parker Peak fires

White Draw and Parker Peak fires

The map above shows the fire perimeters (the red line) that were detected by a fixed-wing infrared mapping flight at 10:22 p.m. MT, July 2, 2012. The red squares represent heat detected by a satellite at 12:50 p.m. MT, July 3, 2012. The White Draw fire is on the left, and the Parker Peak fire is on the right. The fires are five to eight miles northeast of Edgemont, SD.

Wyoming Hotshots, White Draw Fire
Wyoming Hotshots, White Draw Fire, July 2, 2012

Brian Scott, spokesperson for the fire, told us at 5:25 p.m. on Tuesday that today fire crews have been busy conducting planned burnouts to help tie in some fire lines on the White Draw fire. It has also expanded on the north, he said, and is putting up a large amount of smoke.

Monday night the Incident Management Team called the fire 50% contained and said it had burned 4,950 acres.

After a much dryer and warmer than normal spring, firefighters are dealing with flashy fuels that ignite rapidly. Hazardous steep terrain and rattlesnakes are added additional “watch out” conditions for them to deal with.

 

MAFFS air tanker fatalities identified

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , 3 Comments on MAFFS air tanker fatalities identified

MAFFS 7 crewThe North Carolina National Guard has released the names of the C-130 crewmembers who were killed when their MAFFS air tanker crashed in South Dakota on Sunday.

Dead are Lt. Col. Paul K. Mikeal, 42, of Mooresville, N.C.; Maj. Joseph M. McCormick, 36, of Belmont, N.C.; Maj. Ryan S. David, 35, of Boone, N.C.; Senior Master Sgt. Robert S. Cannon, 50, of Charlotte.

“Words can’t express how much we feel the loss of these airmen,” said Brig. Gen. Tony McMillan, 145 AW commander. “Our prayers are with their families, as well as our injured brothers as they recover.”

MAFFS 7 tailMikeal was assigned to the 156th Airlift Squadron as an evaluator pilot and had more than 20 years of service. He leaves behind a wife and two children.

McCormick was an instructor pilot and chief of training for the 156th Airlift Squadron. He was married with four children.

David was an experienced navigator and was also assigned to the 156th. He joined the North Carolina Air National Guard in 2011 after prior service in the active-duty U.S. Air Force. He is survived by his wife and one child.

Cannon had more than 29 years with the Charlotte unit and was a flight engineer with the 145th Operations Support Flight. He was married with two children.

The names of the injured will not be released. Both of the injured airmen remain hospitalized.

The crew and its aircraft along with two other 145th C-130s and three dozen airmen flew from Charlotte to Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo., Saturday to assist with fighting forest fires in the Rocky Mountain region. They were due to move to a base in Cheyenne, Wyoming on Monday. The crash occurred around 6:30 p.m. MT near Edgemont, South Dakota as the crew was dropping retardant on the White Draw fire. The cause of the crash is unknown and is under investigation.

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The images are from a tribute video posted on YouTube by Micah B.