Kaniksu Complex: The Tower
Fire, along with six smaller fires, is all part of the Kaniksu
Complex. The total acreage of all fires in the complex is 21,308 acres, 24
percent contained. Firefighters are patrolling the
smaller fires but the majority of firefighting resources are assigned to the Tower
Fire.
· Baldy Fire: located 16 miles north of Ione, Wash. (515
acres)
· Onata Fire: located about 8 eight miles east/southeast of Ione (497 acres)
· Hall
Mountain Fire: located on Hall Mountain (46 acres)
· Grease Creek Fire: located south of Hall Mountain (196 acres)
· Slate Creek (1 acre) and South Fork Slate Creek Trail (125
acre): located near the northwest boundary of Salmo-Priest Wilderness
Current Resources: The number of firefighters is 789. Equipment includes: 18
crews, 12 dozers, 21
engines, 11 water tenders, 1 Air
Attack, 1 skidgen, 2
helicopters and 3 Blackhawks for medical transport.
Tower Fire:
Size: 19,928
acres Containment: 9%
Strategy: Full
Suppression Situation: Lightning, started Aug.
11
Location: 17
mi.
north of Newport, Wash. and 6 mi. west of
Priest Lake, Idaho
Update: Saturday’s cold
front and associated severe winds caused fewer control issues than anticipated
for the Tower Fire and other
fires in the Kaniksu Complex. At
midday,
smoke and dust obscured the fire. In
several areas, particularly at Squaw Valley, fire managers could
not know precisely how far the fire had
advanced or how
fast it was moving.
Acting with an abundance of caution, the incident management team, in conjunction with both Bonner County, Idaho, and
Pend
Oreille County, Wash., raised
the evacuation
level for the Big Meadow/Squaw Valley area to Level 3.
Residents there were ordered to leave. The
evacuation alert level
for
the north Hwy 57
corridor from
Dickensheet Road north to the Nordman area,
including the west
side of Priest Lake, was raised from Level
1 to
Level 2. Firefighters moved to safer areas
for the duration of the wind
event, returning later
to the line.
After several
hours, winds and fire behavior dropped
off and visibility improved. At a
community meeting Saturday evening in Priest Lake,
Bonner County Sheriff
Daryl Wheeler announced to a relieved
crowd that evacuation levels were being reduced to what
they had
been
the earlier in the day. At the conclusion of the
meeting, residents
were
able to return to their homes in
the
Big Meadow/Squaw
Valley area.
· The Priest Lake, Idaho, area and Highway 57 are open
to all traffic. All businesses along with
federal and state campgrounds at
Priest Lake are open.
· There are no mandatory evacuation orders for these fires. If an evacuation order were issued, it
would be called a Level 3
Evacuation, which
means it is time to
go.
· A Level 2
Evacuation Alert remains for Big Meadow/Squaw Valley. Level 2 means you are set to
leave on very short notice.
· A Level 1
Evacuation Alert remains in place for
the north Hwy 57 corridor that includes the Nordman area and the west side of Priest Lake. In Level 1, residents should be ready to leave
and
should monitor emergency services. Those with special needs, pets, livestock or that need transportation assistance should take early precautionary movement to relocate.
· A Level 1
Evacuation Alert remains for the Bear Paw area and the south
Hwy 57 corridor from Priest River north to
Dickensheet Road. This alert includes the
west side of Priest Lake. The
Level 1 Evacuation for Hwy 57 has been issued because fire managers are aware that Hwy
57 is the main route south
from the Priest Lake community. It is not because of imminent fire danger to the area.
· A Level 1
Evacuation Alert is still in effect for two central Pend Oreille County,
Wash, areas: the
Best Chance residential area and a corridor on the
east
side of the Pend Oreille River, starting at
the intersection of Le Clerc Creek Road
and
North Le Clerc Road south
to a half mile south of the Usk bridge.
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