Carlton
Zone Fire Update
Monday July 28, 2014
· Blog: carltoncomplex.blogspot.com
· On Facebook search for: Carlton Complex Wildfire
· Inciweb: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/3967/
· Twitter: #carltoncomplex
En Espanol (360) 280-4352
Email: carltoncomplexfire@gmail.com
Media briefings held daily at 11:00 AM at the Carlton
Zone ICP located at the Liberty Bell High School south of Winthrop.
Fire Operations:
The fire is now 66%
contained, with an acreage total of 250,806.
The increased heat and dryness have heated the fire up a bit, producing
some isolated smoke. Helicopters put
water on some hot spots around the Pearrygin Lake area, however none of the
activity was a new start or outside the fire perimeter. On the northeastern corner it was the same
situation, some isolated smoke and heat that resources spent the day
extinguishing and monitoring. Further
south on the eastern side, near the ski area, it was similar, the occasional
smoking tree and hot spot that crews were able to manage. Around the Gold Creek-McFarland creek area
resources were busy responding to civilian concerns about smoke. Nothing to be alarmed about, everything was
dealt with and nothing escaped the fire perimeter. Residents, though, should be aware that the
fire is not yet out and activity will still be noticeable. Please report any concerns you may have.
Fire staffing
continued throughout Sunday night.
Personnel will remain available 24 hours a day to respond to any
needs.
Safety Message: Fire season in Washington is far from
over. It is not too late to make your
home or business more defensible against wildfires. Please visit http://www.firewise.org/ to learn how you can make your
building more defensible.
Weather Message: Hot and dry weather is expected, with the potential for
triple digit heat early next week.
Following this, monsoonal moisture and dry lightning is a
possibility. Be advised there may be an
increase in fire activity as fuels dry out and residents can expect to continue
to see smoke.
We are all grateful to the efforts made by our firefighters.
ReplyDeleteI am also trying to understand what firefighting actions are taken in the NW fire area, affecting upper half of area C, and entire D area. The concern is that the fire, which is now half a mile from the lake, will soon reach many homes on E Chewuch Rd and around Pearrygin Lake.
Both, the official blog (titled Carlton North) and the inciweb, list “66% contained” but my understanding is that half of C and the entire D (as well as the entire N – NW area) is actually 0% contained and the 66% refers to the entire Complex, not the North area. For the past 4 days the announcements mention that the “burnout is the only option” and “we are waiting for the right conditions”.
I believe the safety of our firefighters should be the priority and the “direct” method” may be too risky. How about doing the same thing that was done for the city of Twisp and Winthrop? I.e. set up a berm on an acceptable line out of danger for the firefighters. How about mopping the fire fingers? I trust you make the right decisions and prevent the reoccurrence of what happened in Pateros. Thank you
Thank you for your comments. The 66% containment number references the entire complex. The South Zone is 90%, the East Zone 58%,and the Carlton Zone (aka North) is 55% contained. Divisions C and D are a very high priority, but much of the terrain in those areas is very tough ground for firefighters to go direct (as you note). Contingency lines, or "indirect" lines are a major part of the strategy in situations like this. Crews have been working to that end for a while now. We continue to prepare for the burnout operation, as a low intensity burn will help remove hazardous fuels in that area as we try to tie it back to the old Tripod burned area. This fire could go for a long time unless we remove some of the fuels in it's path. As you can tell from the activity today, last weeks rain only hit the "pause" button. There is still a lot of fire out there for us to contain, control, and mop up.
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