{"id":8314,"date":"2024-08-22T08:24:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-22T15:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/?p=8314"},"modified":"2024-08-22T08:35:42","modified_gmt":"2024-08-22T15:35:42","slug":"evacuations-road-closures-as-wildfires-blow-up-across-northern-wyoming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/2024\/08\/22\/evacuations-road-closures-as-wildfires-blow-up-across-northern-wyoming\/","title":{"rendered":"Evacuations, Road Closures As Wildfires Blow Up Across Northern Wyoming"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A good recap of the fires in Wyoming, and probably contributing to the smoky conditions in Cheyenne. There also looks to be substantial fires in Oregon and Idaho that look like they could be contributing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/cowboystatedaily.com\/2024\/08\/22\/evacuations-road-closures-as-wildfires-blow-up-across-northern-wyoming\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
Hot, windy and dry conditions have conspired to blow up new and existing wildfires across northern and central Wyoming. The fires have also prompted evacuations and closures of parts of Interstates 90 and 25.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

By Clair McFarland<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Wildfire
Wildfire burns overnight in northern Wyoming, forcing evacuations and putting others on notice of possible evacuations. (Powder River Fire District)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Numerous northern and central Wyoming counties are evacuating neighborhoods or warning of evacuations after lightning activity, dry conditions and high winds have sparked and blew up a number of wildfires that are burning out of control. Interstates 90 and 25 also were closed for periods Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Campbell County<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Campbell County Fire Department responded to multiple fires Wednesday afternoon from around the county, all presumed to be lightning-caused fires, according to a statement by the agency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Multiple firefighting units converged on two of the larger fires, the Constitution fire near Collins Road, which had reached about 3,000 acres as of 6 p.m.; and the Flat Rich Fire, 13 miles west on Echete Road, which had consumed about 500 acres by 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome structures have been damaged from the fire and others are threatened,\u201d says the fire department\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The department said it has been using County Road and Bridge resources to place a containment line. Residents are experiencing heavy smoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The department told residents to be prepared to evacuate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 The Oriva Hills area in response to the Flat Iron fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 All areas north of Interstate 90 and west of Gillette to Arvada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Rural subdivisions south of Interstate 90 and west of Gillette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Everything north of Rawhide Mine to Horse Creek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFires may move towards you without much notice,\u201d read an emergency alert dispatched at 9:40 p.m. The winds kept changing direction, the notice added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Campbell County School District No. 1 enacted a two-hour delay to the start of school Thursday. Campbell County\u2019s government offices also noted a two-hour opening delay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cam-Plex opened up its facilities to residents with livestock impacted by the fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting around 10:30 p.m. until 4 a.m. this morning, residents began dropping off animals, according to Aaron Lyles, Cam-Plex executive director.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The facility has 500 stalls available, Lyles said, and right now, there are 75 horses on grounds and about 30 bulls in a pasture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lyles said they also have the Wyoming Center ready for anyone displaced as part of the county\u2019s pre-evacuation orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Wildfire
Wildfire burns overnight in northern Wyoming, forcing evacuations and putting others on notice of possible evacuations. (Powder River Fire District)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Weston County<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Weston County Emergency Management warned residents of multiple fires about 6:30 Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou will see smoke in almost every direction,\u201d reads the department\u2019s statement. \u201cResources are thin and dispatch is taking numerous calls. Please stay out of firefighters (sic) way as they are working very hard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More reports rolled in by 9 p.m. from the Sundown Trail, Oil Creek and Ertman Road areas. The department thanked the ranchers and contractors helping to fight the blazes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aladdin resident Jason Williams brought a homemade fire-fighting rig to the scene to help, and was up all night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hot, dry, lightning-ravaged weather has “been a nightmare,” he said, adding that Weston County Fire Warden Dan Tysdal and the volunteer firefighters have been “kicking ass along with guys with little units like me. Quick action by everyone has stopped some potentially horrible situations.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Federal authorities were quick to call in air support, he said. Williams was going to bed around 8:45 Thursday morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Today I imagine more (fires) will pop up when it warms up,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Johnson County<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A fire in Johnson County shut down a portion of Interstate 90 and evacuated 10-15 houses Wednesday afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Johnson County Sheriff\u2019s Office asked Campbell County Emergency Management to evacuate residents from Interstate 90 north to the Sheridan County line and living within 10 miles of the Johnson\/Campbell County line to evacuate, says a 9 p.m. statement by Campbell County Emergency Management. Those displaced were offered refuge at the Bomber Mountain Civic Center in Buffalo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis fire is still not contained,\u201d wrote Johnson County Emergency Management in a 9:28 p.m. statement to its Facebook page. \u201cPlease remain out of the area so first responders can continue their work and efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Firefighters didn\u2019t need volunteers for that area but would alert the public if that changes, the statement says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The Fish Creek Fire burning in rugged terrain in northwest Wyoming continues to grow and is 0% contained. (Wyoming State Forestry Division)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Fremont County<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fremont County authorities Wednesday evening dispatched a pre-evacuation notice in the region west of Dubois as the Clearwater and Fish Creek fires continue to grow. Burning in remote and rugged terrain, the Fish Creek Fire has burned nearly 8,000 acres and remains 0% contained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is significant danger to your area, and residents should either voluntarily relocate to a shelter or with family\/friends outside of the affected area, or if choosing to remain, be ready to evacuate at a moment\u2019s notice,\u201d the statement says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The areas on notice were along U.S. Highway 26, or Togwotee Pass, in the areas of mileposts 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 and 35. Those neighborhoods include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Brooks Lake Road including Brooks Lake Lodge<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 West Pinnacle Dr; all homes and\/or dwellings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 East Pinnacle Dr; all homes and\/or dwellings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Pinnacle Lane: all homes and\/or dwellings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Breccia Drive; all homes and\/or dwellings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deputy Fremont County Fire Warden Ron Wempen said the fire was still burning in the evening in a \u201cheavy, dense spruce forest\u201d with dead trees and signs of recent beetle kill. It ignited about Thursday night, likely from a lightning storm that passed through the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the week\u2019s hot and windy weather \u201cstarted to push that fire much faster,\u201d said Wempen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around 150 people were fighting the fire late Wednesday evening, he told Cowboy State Daily at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cQuite a few\u201d people at the lodge were either evacuated or put on notice, he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Campbell
Campbell County fires raged Wednesday night, prompting pre evacuation notices stretching to the Johnson and Sheridan county lines. (Courtesy Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Converse County<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A fire between Glenrock and Douglas prompted residential evacuations around Natural Bridge Road and Barber Road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPlease evacuate the area immediately due to large grass fire,\u201d reads a 5:32 Wednesday-evening statement by Converse County Emergency Management. The fire closed down Interstate 25 going both directions between Douglas and Casper. Authorities diverted traffic via Wyoming Highway 93 and 95 through Glenrock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The evacuation notice around Natural Bridge was lifted as of 6:22 p.m. The interstate was reopened around that time as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of midnight the fire was contained. It left pockets of unburned vegetation inside the fire lines, which erratic winds sent the fires around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Multiple fire units remained on scene through the night, says the statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCurrently the breeze is bringing a lot of smoke and stink along the river into Glenrock,\u201d says the statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cowboy State Daily writer Jen Kocher contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A good recap of the fires in Wyoming, and probably contributing to the smoky conditions in Cheyenne. There also looks to be substantial fires in Oregon and Idaho that look like they could be contributing. https:\/\/cowboystatedaily.com\/2024\/08\/22\/evacuations-road-closures-as-wildfires-blow-up-across-northern-wyoming\/ Hot, windy and dry conditions have conspired to blow up new and existing wildfires across northern and central Wyoming. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wyoming"],"blocksy_meta":[],"featured_image_src":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Jason","author_link":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/author\/jturning\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8314"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8318,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8314\/revisions\/8318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}