July 26, 2015 - Noon
The North
Boulder 2 is located 3 ½ miles southwest of the town of Orient, Washington. The
fire is burning in heavy mixed conifer with a large amount of standing dead
trees and heavy surface fuels. Washington Incident Management Team 2 (WAIMT2)
is managing the North Boulder 2 fire working closely with the Colville National
Forest fire managers in developing fire suppression strategies.
With limited
road access, firefighter safety was of the utmost concern. Yesterday afternoon,
fire crews took advantage of the cooler, more favorable weather conditions
working close to the fire’s edge. Firefighters scouted the perimeter and
determined a safe, direct attack could be initiated. Mechanized equipment, such
as dozers and excavators were used to remove dead and down trees, logs, and other
debris.
The structure
protection group completed an inventory of structures in the Orient area, as
well as other area structures adjacent to the fire. Although no structures are
threatened at this time, preparing a structure inventory plan can assist
firefighters in the event that the fire were to move through that specific
area. An added benefit is that the inventory and plan will be available to
local fire agencies in the future.
Today, the
focus will be to continue the work to remove danger trees, and construct line
along portions of the fire to reduce firefighter exposure. Hotshot crews will
be constructing line adjacent to the burned edge on the east flank. Fire crews
will also continue working on an indirect attack for an alternate fire line along
the northern perimeter brushing roads and clearing debris.
Approximately
356 firefighters are assigned to the fire with additional resources ordered.
The fire is in the municipal water supply of the town of Orient. Fire behavior
is minimal as the fire creeps along with isolated torching and minimal fire
spread. As a result of the infrared
flight overnight, the updated acreage on the North Boulder 2 fire is at 176. There
are no threats to private property and no injuries have been reported.
Firefighter and public safety is the top priority on the North Boulder 2 fire.
A low
pressure system will linger over the fire area and slowly move out of the
region on Monday. Cooler temperatures, higher relative humidity, and scattered
showers will continue today keeping fire behavior low. Some smoke may be
visible to the public along Hwy 395.
Washington Interagency Incident
Management Team 2 (WA IMT2) would like to thank the public for their support
during the North Boulder 2 fire. Fire danger remains extremely high across the
state. Be sure to check your fire agencies for local restrictions, forest and
state closures.
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