8/22/2018 Miriam Fire Update

Miriam Fire Update Wednesday, August 22, 2018 -- 9 a.m.

Miriam Fire Update Fire Information Line: 360-481-0031   August 22, 2018 – 9 a.m. Acres: Miriam Fire – 3,653; Clear Fork Fire - 20 Percent Containment: 30%                                                                                                                                              Start Date: 07/30/18 Personnel/Resources: 2-Type 2 IA hand crews, 1-camp crew, 1-heavy lift helicopter, 1-medium lift helicopter, 1-light lift helicopter, 12-engines, 1-dozer, 6-water tenders, 2-mastacators and 1-forwarder processor for 272 total personnel. Location: Two miles east of White Pass Ski Area, within the Goat Rocks Wilderness on the Naches Ranger District, 13 miles east of Packwood, WA. Cause: Lightning Values at Risk: White Pass area and ski resort; homes and organizational camps at Clear and Rimrock Lakes; Wilderness; late successional reserve; northern spotted owl and other wildlife habitat; bull trout habitat; and state highway 12. Estimated Incident Containment or completion: 9/30/2018 Smoke Information: Smoke concentrations in the area have lifted with increased winds and instability. The smoke is forecasted to clear more on Thursday. For further smoke information visithttp://wasmoke.blogspot.com/p/state.html or https://www.airnow.gov/ Current Situation on the Miriam Fire: The Miriam Fire remains a full suppression fire. Yesterday, smoke dissipated in the area, allowing air operations over the fire to occur. The Miriam Fire was visible by air allowing a better assessment of area of heat. Moderate fire behavior was observed with short runs a small group tree torching in Scatter, Miriam and Hell Creek drainages. The fire remained within the containment lines. Firefighters attempted to strengthen the containment line extended from Forest Road (FR) 1207 to Tieton Meadows. Fire was applied along the line to reduce fuels were possible. Mop-up is ongoing along the hand line and road. Snags threatening firefighter safety were removed. Logs generated from containment line development along FR 1200-540 are being removed and decked. Additional slash cleanup is underway as well. Removing vegetative debris generated from preparing FR 1205 and 1204 as contingency lines is on-going. Structure protection group is beginning to remove firefighting equipment from the area. An infra-red flight from last night indicated there was heat in both Miriam and Hell Creeks, and also in the Tieton Meadows area. Firefighters are remaining vigilant and ready to respond to any increased fire threats and new fire starts. Current Situation on the Clear Fork Fire: The Clear Fork fire was flown and assessed for the first time in a few days. The fire is spreading due of the rolling of burning debris. This fire will continue to be monitored closely with aerial resources when visibility allows. Weather and Fire Behavior: Today will be mostly sunny with temperatures forecasted for 85 degrees with relative humidity near 17%. Northeast to northwest winds of 5-10 mph are anticipated. Expect low to moderate fire behavior with tree torching and runs possible aided by wind or slope. Evacuations: Evacuation levels remain the same. The need for these levels are evaluated daily. Please see the Yakima County Office of Emergency Management Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/yakimacountyoemfor a full description. Closures: Area Closures are in effect on the Okanogan-Wenatchee and Gifford Pinchot National Forests for safety to the public and firefighters. Find maps and a list of affected sites at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6066/ Fire managers are aware of the upcoming hunting seasons and closures will be assessed frequently. New fire restriction have been implemented on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. Please see https://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/fire-restrictions for a full description. The Pacific Crest Trail is closed from Elk Pass to White Pass. A detour is available. Please see the Pacific Crest Trail Association website at https://www.pcta.org/discover-the-trail/closures/ for current closure maps. A Temporary Flight Restriction remains in place over the two fire areas as a safety precaution to aerial firefighting resources. Please consult the notice to airmen for specifics. Local businesses remain open. Please consider showing your support by shopping in the local communities. Nationally an estimated 90% of wildfires are human caused. In some states, this number increase to 95% or more. Learn more about the One Less Spark Campaign at http://www.readyforwildfire.org/one-less-spark-campaign  Locally, fire danger is very high to extreme so please be careful with any sparks and burning materials while enjoying the outdoors. Please use extra caution while parking at trail heads to avoid areas of tall grass. Those towing trailers are cautioned to shorten safety chains to prevent dragging and generating sparks.  For Online Miriam Fire Updates visit: Inciweb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6066/ Miriam Fire Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MiriamFire Incident Management Team: Northwest Incident Management Team 8, Incident Command Doug Johnson.