East Fork & Center Creek Trail Fire Update
Saturday, September 12, 2020
East Fork Fire: Clear skies on Friday allowed aerial resources to be utilized for suppression operations. Ground crews directed helicopter water bucket drops on hot spots along the fire perimeter. Clear skies, combined with warmer temperatures, increased fire activity, where crews completed prep work on the Yellowstone Road and continued line construction from Moon Lake Road to Rock Creek Road.
Center Creek Trail Fire: Helicopters worked the southeast portion of the fire yesterday, dropping water on hot spots. Tactical operations like this, along with the continued development of defensible space further south, are part of Team 7’s strategy.
Closures: Closures are in effect for the Ashley National Forest and on Uintah and Ouray Tribal Lands. Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office has closed county roads in and near the fire area.
All closures are posted at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7052/.
Closure Map: https://go.usa.gov/xG8PW
Today’s Operations: On theEast Fork Fire, crews will clear vegetation to create defensible space along the Stillwater trail system and Rock Creek Road from Rock Creek Campground to upper Stillwater Reservoir. Along the southeast fire perimeter crews continue building direct and indirect handline from Twin Pots Reservoir to Rock Creek Road. Further south, firefighters are preparing contingency lines from Bear Wallow Road to Pigeon Wallow Road. Significant heat remains throughout the fire area as heavy fuels continue to burn, creating visible smoke in the coming days.
Weather: Today’s temperatures will be 4-6 degrees higher than yesterday, up to 67 degrees. As temperatures continue to increase, relative humidities will decline and fire behavior will become more active. Large heavy fuels continue to burn, and grass and shrubs are becoming more receptive to fire. Weather tonight will be in the low 40s with steady north/northwest winds of 7-10 mph and gusts to 15 mph.
Safety: The public is asked to respect road and area closures. Please drive with caution as firefighters are working in the area and smoke reduces visibility. Drones are hazardous to fire aviation assets and are not permitted in the fire area. Remember: If you fly, we can’t. Firefighter and public safety are the highest priority for Great Basin Team 7.
Resources: 4 Helicopters, 23 Engines, 1 Hotshot crew, 1 Type 2 Initial Attack handcrew, 2 dozers and 2 Wildland Fire Modules. Currently 259 firefighters are assigned to the East Fork Fire. The Center Creek Trail Fire has 23 firefighters assigned.
