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With containment increasing by the day, the biggest threat to firelines on the Consalus Fire is falling trees. While containment jumped to 30% Saturday morning, falling trees carrying heat or spreading sparks as they fall could cause fires outside firelines, Northern Rockies Type 3 Incident Management Team officials said.
Crews made significant gains on the Consalus Fire, doubling containment to 20%, fire officials said Friday. Containment is expected to grow even more in the coming days, Northern Rockies Type 3 incident management team officials said.
With hotter and drier weather on the horizon, increased smoke and fire activity on the Consalus Fire is possible. However, an infrared flight Wednesday morning showed fire lines were holding and strategic firing operations were successful, Northern Rockies Type 3 incident management team officials said. A strategic firing operation involves the controlled use of low-intensity fire to reduce fuels and add depth to firelines.
An infrared flight earlier this week showed significantly less heat along the Consalus Fire’s eastern edge. That flight has fire managers from the Northern Rockies Type 3 incident management team assessing current fire lines to determine where they might be considered contained. Containment is when a control line has been completed and can reasonably be expected to stop a fire from spreading.
With containment of the Bee Top Fire approaching 90%, control of the fire is being returned to Idaho Panhandle National Forests officials. Over on the Consalus Fire, the lightning-caused blaze inched upward to 444 acres and some of the resources from the Bee Top are being diverted to the Pend Oreille County fire.