| Event code | FR-VEG/01761/USA |
|---|---|
| Main category | Fire |
| Sub category | vegetation |
| Event date (UTC) | Thu, 03 Sep 2020 09:36:29 +0000 |
| Last update (UTC) | Thu, 03 Sep 2020 09:36:29 +0000 |
| Continent | North-America |
|---|---|
| Country | USA |
| Administration area | State of Montana |
| Settlement | |
| Exact location | Greater Birdseye area |
| Open Location Code: | 85R9MV73+J9 |
| Size of affected area | County-level |
| Additional events | None or not detected. |
| Urgency | Past |
|---|---|
| Certainty | Observed |
| Severity | Extreme |
| Category | Fire |
A fast-moving wildfire burned about 800 acres northwest of Helena Wednesday afternoon and caused the evacuation of part of the West Helena Valley. The Birdseye fire sparked near where Birdseye Road crosses the railroad tracks north of Fort Harrison at about 4 p.m. Wednesday. The blaze quickly grew under red flag conditions including high winds and low relative humidity, sending a large column of smoke over Helena. “It was extreme fire behavior,” said Chris Spliethof, an incident commander with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. “In some areas, we were getting 10- to 20-foot flames.” The fire threatened several houses and damaged fences in the area. It burned mostly in grass and sagebrush but did hit a creek bottom with willows as well. “It burned right up to a few houses – a half dozen structures had fires close to them but they were able to get engines in there in the nick of time,” Spliethof said. One historic building in the area was damaged, although authorities did not immediately have the name of the building. Firefighters were mopping up the fire as of 7:30 p.m. but Spliethof expected crews to remain on the scene for the next three or four days. About 100 rural volunteer firefighters responded to the fire, as well as the DNRC, city of Helena, and helicopters from the Montana Army National Guard said Paige Cohen with DNRC. The fire was being managed under a unified command among the departments and the state. The cause of the fire remained under investigation Wednesday evening. The fire triggered evacuations north of Custer Avenue, south of Lincoln Road, and west of Green Meadow Drive. Road closures included Green Meadow, Franklin Mine, Head Lane, and Alfalfa Road. “We’re trying to press people to stay out of the area and if people do feel unsafe at all, even if they have not been evacuated they should evacuate themselves if they feel unsafe at all,” Cohen said. Evacuations for residents was lifted at 8:30 p.m. Authorities asked that others remain away from the area.| Number of dead: | 0 person(s) |
|---|---|
| Number of injured: | 0 person(s) |
| Number of Affected: | 0 person(s) |
| Number of Rescued/evacuated: | 0 person(s) |
| Number of Missing: | 0 person(s) |
| Number of Infected: | 0 person(s) |