Fire in Blaine County grows despite rain and calming winds

While the Coal Ridge Fire in Blaine County has grown significantly, Tuesday night rain and calmer winds seem to have kept the fire from spreading more uncontrollably.

A release from the Montana Bureau of Land Management Wednesday said the fire has now been mapped at 1,200 acres, up from the previous estimate of 450 acres the day before, having burned 790 acres of private land.

The release said 166 acres of Bureau of Land Management managed lands, including areas within the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and Havre Field Office areas, have also been burned along, with 250 acres of state-managed lands about 5 miles north of Stafford Ferry in Blaine County.

The release said the fire received about a tenth-of-an-inch of rain Tuesday night and fire behavior at this point is minimal.

Wednesday night was not as fortunate, as the area got almost no precipitation at all, even as some neighboring areas did.

National Weather Service Great Falls Lead Meteorologist Cody Moldan said the closest instruments to the fire received less than a one-hundredth of an inch, so precipitation likely had no impact at all that night.

The fire, originally reported Tuesday, is being fought by a team from BLM, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest Service as well as Blaine and Fergus counties along with private resources.

The team is being led by the Bureau’s North Central Montana District, which took over command Tuesday afternoon.

“The public is advised to stay clear of the area and not operate unmanned aircraft-drones-in the vicinity,” the release says. “Please, do not engage in any activity that could obstruct active fire operations and increase risk to firefighters.”

Not long before this fire was first reported a regional fire call between the counties in this area of Montana reported that it had been a slow couple of weeks for fires in the area, but cautioned counties to remain vigilant, as windy weather can make fire conditions more dangerous.

The release said people should check for fire restrictions before starting outdoor activities at http://www.mtfireinfo.org .