Smoky skies as state fire activity increases

Wildfire smoke continues to roll into Montana as fire season has begun to pick up both in the state and regionally the Montana Department of Environmental Quality said Monday.

Much of western Montana was near or above 100 AQI, with Great Falls and some sensors around Helena picking up air quality readings in the red, or “unhealthy category” on Monday, a trend that continued from the weekend.

And more smoke is on the way, according to DEQ, which issued an Air Quality Alert for 21 counties on Monday morning. 

Those counties are: Blaine, Cascade, Chouteau, Deer Lodge, Fergus, Glacier, Granite, Hill, Judith Basin, Lake, Lewis and Clark, Liberty, Missoula, Petroleum, Pondera, Powell, Ravalli, Silver Bow, Teton, Toole, and Phillips.

That alert expires on Tuesday morning at 8 a.m., but smoke could continue. Above normal heat is expected across wide swaths of Montana for the 6-10 days according to the National Weather Service.

“By Tuesday afternoon, the Rapid Refresh Forecast System (RRFS) smoke model shows areas of heavy smoke covering much of the western half of the state from domestic and regional wildfires,” a DEQ Facebook post states.

Oregon and Washington have been hit hard in recent weeks, with three massive fires — the Rowe Creek Complex, Kaiser Canyon and Hay Creek Complex, burning over a half million acres combined.

According to the state fire information website, Montana has seen 19 fires in the past 24 hours and 92 during the past week. The state has mostly escaped large fires so far this year and the site notes 32,886 acres have burned this year.

The state had five active fires as “large” as of Monday afternoon.

The Elder 1 fire, seven miles southwest of Frenchtown, saw significant growth during the weekend and was estimated to be 318 acres, fire managers reported Monday. The cause of the fire is undetermined.

Firefighters were constructing handlines and laying down hoses, according to the latest fire briefing. Two dozers are on the fire, as well as two helicopters, and crews were tasked with establishing more access to the wildfire and construction of more lines. The cost for that fire was already estimated at $550,000, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

The North Fork Fire, 10 miles southwest of Hamilton, was scheduled to get a reconnaissance flight on Monday morning to get a better understanding of the wildfire, the fire information page said. That fire, currently estimated at 105 acres, was recorded as lighting-caused and is burning on steep slopes in the Bitterroot National Forest. That has made access to the fire difficult and firefighters also dealt with “extreme” heat, as well as 40-mph winds and low humidity.

Firefighters across the state near Judith Gap were also dealing with a blaze with access issues on Monday. The Twin Sisters fire, estimated at 93 acres, was burning in heavy timber with “difficult” ground access.

The report stated both helicopters and air tankers were making runs at the fire. That fire has drawn personnel from Judith Basin County, Montana DNRC, and the U.S. Forest Service.

“Hot, dry, and windy weather will increase fire behavior this afternoon,” a Monday report for the fires states. “Smoke will be visible from surrounding communities. The cause of the fire is undetermined.”

Other large incidents on Monday included the Silvertip Fire (estimated at 394 acres) which was burning in the Bob Marshall Wilderness east of Highway 83. Another fire at Moffitt Dam, south of Miles City, was estimated at 350 acres.