7/29/2021 Cedar Creek and Delancy Fire Updates

 Fire Weather: Temperatures are forecast to be warmer throughout the day and into the evening. Morning smoke may be slower to lift out of the valleys but is expected to rise and drift northeast after 2 pm this afternoon. Temperatures should reach the 90s and humidity is expected to be low. Winds will be mostly slope and valley driven. We can expect poor overnight humidity recovery with stronger thermal belts. Going into the weekend, we may experience more unsettled weather with possible isolated thunderstorms.

Cedar Creek Fire: The fire is currently estimated at 36,922 acres and is 10% contained. Last night the fire was active in the Silver Star Creek area. A significant glow was observed through the night. Today, firefighters will use aircraft to check the fires advance and will work to establish control lines. The fire continues to back down the slope along the Highway 20 corridor. As the fire makes its way to the control feature, firefighters will burn the remaining fuels back up to the fires edge. By allowing the fire to slowly burn downhill at a low intensity, firefighters can avoid unnecessary soil damage. This will pay dividends post-fire when rains and melting snow might create debris flows coming out of the burn area. The large pocket of unburned fuels off Highway 20 near Lucky Jim Bluff continued to burn overnight. Removal of these fuels will clean up the fire perimeter and this section will no longer pose as great a threat to structures in the area. Today, fire crews are working in the Little Wolf Creek area and will evaluate the dozer line that was being constructed to tie into Thompson Ridge. Observations from aircraft indicate that the line may still be viable as a control feature. Firefighters are also surveying existing roads and old dozer lines that were constructed during the 2014 Little Bridge Creek fire to provide additional control options. The objective is to build a control line that will run below Gobblers Knob, along dozer line to Thompson Ridge, and ultimately tying into the Little Bridge burn scar. This control feature would be designed to prevent fire from moving south toward the community of Twisp. Structure protection continues to be a top priority with multiple strike teams of state and local engines (state mob) patrolling homes along the fire perimeter. Crews continue to construct and improve lines to keep the fire above the Methow River Valley and away from values at risk.

Delancy Fire: Fire activity remains minimal. The fire is being monitored from the ground by fire crews and from the air by firefighting aircraft. The estimated size of the Delancy Fire is approximately 223 acres.