Page 30 - Flathead River News Today

More crews and equipment have arrived on the Flathead Indian reservation in support of fire suppression efforts fighting five fires sparked by lightning.

Lake County and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes adopted Stage 2 fire restrictions and Flathead County commissioners declared a state of emergency Tuesday in the midst of a host of wildfires that have burned more than 20,000 acres of land in the area in recent days.

The following is a Facebook post by CSKT Division of Fire:

Smoke came primarily from a swath of fires burning locally in western Montana and Idaho.

The Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribal Division of Fire is battling several spreading wildfires in the Mission Valley area. Officials welcomes the

Smoke came primarily from a swath of fires burning locally in western Montana and Idaho.

Wildfires sparked by a Sunday lightning storm expanded across the Flathead Indian Reservation. Extreme fire activity was observed Sunday with high gusting winds up to 35mph.

UPDATE AT 5:00 PM:

At a time when Ohio state lawmakers are pushing to expand fracking on public lands, polling in recent years finds most residents are either strongly opposed, somewhat opposed, or unsure about fracking as a means of natural gas production. House Bill 507 was signed into law by Gov. Mike DeWine this year and requires the state to approve permits for oil and gas leasing on state-owned land. ...

Drought and soaring temperatures have prompted state wildlife officials to restrict fishing on some of the states most popular lakes and streams. And, for the first time, they are considering adding them in the Flathead River basin in northwest Montana. The state has imposed so-called hoot-owl restrictions, which prohibit fishing between 2 p.m. ...