Editor’s Note: This is a rapidly changing story. For the latest information, click the links.
The Horse Fire is Wyoming’s first big burn this summer season. The new lightning-caused fire in Sublette County was first reported in the morning on Friday, June 13. It’s about 35 miles west of Pinedale and is roughly 900 acres as of midday June 16.
A few big lightning storms passed through western Wyoming last week.
Bridger-Teton National Forest Public Information Officer Mary Cernicek said even though the fire danger level in the region was low last week, the conditions in the Wyoming Range were right for a fire to get going.
“ The conifers that haven't really come out of their dormant state yet to start taking on water actually were ripe for that lightning strike and the fire started,” she said.
As of Monday afternoon, Teton Interagency Fire listed the fire danger rating as “moderate” for the Winds, the Tetons and the Wyoming Range.
According to Cernicek, the Horse Fire started burning at an elevation of about 8,500 feet in heavy timber. It’s currently 6% contained.
“ Containment means we've got some line around the fire that we don't expect the fire to jump out of,” she said. “That part of the fire is contained into the footprint that it's already burned.”
Cernicek added that an infrared flight on Sunday night showed that the fire is headed more towards the north and the east. Eighty-two people are currently working on the fire, which includes hot shots, helicopters and crews. A Type 3 Incident Management Team took over the fire on Sunday morning.
“We've been able to get everything that we asked for to continue to work on fully suppressing this fire,” said Cernicek.
That work was briefly paused on Saturday when a drone flew over the site, according to a post on the Bridger-Teton National Forest Facebook page. Cernicek that kind of disruption stops firefighting activity and can create a dangerous situation for firefighters and pilots.
“We do have low flying aircraft and drones can get pulled into the rotors of our helicopters. They can get pulled into engines, which can cause crashes,” she said.
The agency reminded the public to keep drones out of wildfire zones. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture website, “individuals who fly UAS [unmanned aircraft systems] without authorization over wildfires may be violating federal, state, and/or local laws, regulations, and ordinances, whether a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place or not.”
Road and trail closures for the surrounding area also went into effect Monday morning. There are currently no evacuation orders in place.
