9/06/2015 North Star and Tunk Block Fire Update

Rain, especially on the North Star Fire, and high humidity reduced fire activity and aided with mop-up. It also delayed burnout operations that were planned to secure fire lines and better protect homes and private property. Hand and dozer lines to control fire spread continued to be constructed along the southwest and west portions of the North Star Fire, and the northeast boundary of the Tunk Block Fire (NE Tunk Mountain). A large portion of the Tunk Block Fire and the southern edge of the North Star fire are in mop-up and patrol. Three task forces with three engines each from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) completed their assignment on the fire.  They were stationed in Republic.

Today’s Operations: If conditions permit, crews will continue burnout in portions of the Hwy 21 corridor, the southwest portion of the North Star Fire, and a small area on the Tunk Block Fire southwest of Disautel. Fireline construction, mop-up and patrol will continue. Work continues on the contingency line northeast of Tunk Mountain should

it be needed to better protect private land and homes in Aeneas Valley, and the lookout.

Weather:  The forecast is for continued cool and mostly cloudy with isolated showers through Tuesday. Maximum temperatures mid-50s at higher elevations and 60-65 in the valleys. Relative humidity will be 25-40%. Winds will be light from the southwest except up to 10 mph on ridges and in the Highway 21 corridor. Moses and Tunk Mountains got a little snow yesterday.

 

Large Fire Size: Changes in fire maps from day to day appear minor but mask the huge sizes of the two fires. An apparently small change on a map may be several miles or hundreds of acres on the ground. The fire perimeter is broken into divisions to manage the fires. On these fires individual divisions cover 10-12 miles of fire perimeter compared to 1-2 miles on a more typical size fire. The total fire perimeter of both fires combined is about 380 miles. The fire fits into a “box” approximately 26 miles by 37 miles. These fires are staffed with 1,781 of the approximately 23,500 personnel

working presently on fire nationwide. That is about one-half to two-thirds of number

of firefighters that would be used on two such large fires if firefighting resources were fully available. It will be some time before the entirety of both fires are contained.

 

Evacuations/Closure Information: Evacuation and closure information is dynamic and changes more frequently than this report is updated. For the most current evacuation information, please contact your closest Emergency Operations Center (EOC): Colville Tribal Emergency Services 509-634-2105, Okanogan County EOC (509) 422-7206, Ferry County EOC 509-775-3132. Highway closure information is available online: http://www.wsdot.com/traffic/trafficalerts .

National Forest Lands east of Tonasket and south of Highway 20 on the Tonasket Ranger District are closed. Colville Indian Reservation

forest and recreational areas are closed within the fires.