By Eric Barker
Lewiston Tribune
LEWISTON, Idaho — Crews worked Tuesday to build lines near Frye Point and deep in China Creek, the last two areas of the Powerline Fire that have not been secured.
The 48,569-acre fire is part of the Craig Mountain Complex, which is 95 percent contained. It is burning on the Craig Mountain Wildlife Area south of Lewiston, and also includes the 1,826-acre Corral Creek Fire burning above Garden Creek Ranch in Hells Canyon.
The two fires were started by lightning strikes on July 15 and burned together last weekend when firefighters lit controlled burns in an effort to consume grass and brush in front of advancing flames.
Fire spokesman Neal Kephart said many of the people fighting the fire are being reassigned to other more pressing blazes around the West. However, 211 people are still working on the complex that just last week had more than 600 people assigned to it.
The ongoing effort includes an elite Hotshot crew and seven Type 2 hand crews. Kephart said they are busy digging hand lines in the last areas that haven’t been secured and making sure there are no hot spots within 100 feet of the established lines.
“Most of the line is in pretty good shape,” he said. “There is a lot more black on (the map). They are confident enough to say that area is contained and our crews are busy doing mop, patrol and hand work.
“We are pretty optimistic that everything is going to be held where it is. There will be several days of patrolling and mopping up and watching everything to make sure it stays in place.”
Kephart noted there has been little to no rain for the past 45 days and said regional fire officials have raised the fire danger in low-elevation areas like river canyons from “very high” to “extreme.”
The fires are burning in steep canyons with grassy slopes. Kephart said. Incident Cmdr. Mike Almas noted in a daily meeting that the terrain and conditions are some of the roughest many of the firefighters will ever face.
“It’s rocky, steep, hot and dry. (There are) snakes, bee stings, snags -- any number of things and they did a great job.”
A local team of Idaho Department of Lands firefighters, led by Jason Svancara, was scheduled to take over management of the fire Wednesday morning.
Copyright 2017 Lewiston Tribune
https://twitter.com/IdahoPubRadio/status/889187457811587072