Oct 17, 2024
BISMARCK, ND (KXNET) — The nearly two-week old Elkhorn wildfire has been 100 percent contained, according to forest and fire officials. The word came down Wednesday from officials of the U.S. Forest Service-Little Missouri National Grassland McKenzie Ranger District and the Watford City Volunteer Fire Department. The Elkhorn Fire started on the afternoon of October 5. Heavy winds drove the fire, which responding fire crews described as "aggressive," exhibiting extreme behavior. "We had to quickly evaluate the situation and identify structures at risk and start suppression efforts in areas where it was safe to place firefighters for an initial attack,” said Watford City Volunteer Fire Department Chief Dave Uhlich. While the fire has been declared 100 percent contained, that doesn’t mean the work is done. Crews will engage in "suppression repair" and continually monitor the area for flare-ups. Suppression repair involves work such as repairing fire damage to the land, preventing erosion in damaged areas to avoid contaminating water supplies, and generally restoring the environment where possible. Here's a quick summary of the status of other wildfires in western North Dakota, power outages and other related news: Bear Den Fire. As of October 16, the Bear Den fire near Mandaree is 85% contained and has burned almost 11,746 acres, according to the state forest service. Buffalo Gap Fire. The blaze, which broke out Tuesday, October 15 north of I-94, one-mile east of Buffalo Gap, has been contained. According to the Golden Valley Sheriff, the fire is no longer spreading. The estimated size of the fire is approximately 1,000 acres. Firefighters from the State of North Dakota and Golva also responded to the blaze. Bismarck/Wilton Fire. Located in the Double Ditch area (west of Highway 83 between Bismarck and Wilton), the fire broke out on the evening of October 12 and was contained the next day. In total, the fire was approximately five miles long, and 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile wide. Roughly 2,200 to 2,300 acres were burned. Pasture 10 fire in Theodore Roosevelt National Park. According to the North Dakota Forest Service's Facebook page, the fire started October 10 in pasture 10 of the north unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, roughly 2 miles west of highway 85. It has been contained. Ray-Tioga-Alamo Fire. What started as separate fires over the weekend merged into one, covering 88,934 acres. As of October 17, that fire is 100% contained. New map tracks status of ND fires. A map has been released by the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services that tracks all the active wildfires in the state. The map has live status information that includes the size and how much has been contained. You can access the map here. Power outages. The Mountrail-Williams Power Cooperative has been working at a near-constant pace since the weekend fires, restoring power to homes, businesses and other locations throughout Williams County. According to the cooperative's outage map as of October 17, about 27 people and rural operations are still without power. Injuries and deaths. In a report to the Williams County Commission October 8, it was noted two people have died and six others injured as a result of the wildfires. Nicolaas van Eeden of South Africa and Ed Coppersmith, Tioga, died in separate incidents. Fire restrictions. They're in effect practically everywhere. Dakota Prairie Grasslands - U.S. Forest Service reminds people that deep fire restrictions are in effect on forest service lands in ND while the fire danger remains high. According to the DPG's Emergency Fire Order and Restrictions, building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire or campfire is currently prohibited; however, there are conditional provisions for using liquid petroleum stoves and grills. Also, there are established conditions for smoking in designated spaces, but be careful with those butts. Don't toss or walk away from lit cigarettes and other smoking materials. Vegetation everywhere across the region is extremely dry and flammable. Additionally, traveling by all-wheeled motor vehicles on non-surfaced (Prairie Two-track) National Forest System Roads is also off the activity list while on the DPG. You can find the full order here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/dpg/alerts-notices/?aid=91474. Other notes. State and local officials expect the fire danger conditions to continue through the fall.
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