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Crews reengage as weather conditions allow

Red Rock Fire

Operations: Crews were more heavily engaged yesterday after the previous few days of precipitation hampered operations. Firefighters continued work along Blackbird Road over to Morgan Creek/Panther Creek Road and along Williams Creek Road to Ridge Road on the north side. Crews secured previous firing operations along Ridge Road. Moving to the southeastern end of the fire along Ridge Road, heavy equipment continued to remove hazardous trees. Firefighters worked in the Salt Creek, Fourth of July Creek, and Moyer Creek areas towards more containment where they could access the fire. Several Hotshot crews addressed heat north of Yellow Jacket Creek on the southwest perimeter. Suppression repair work has begun in some areas. Today, all this work will continue. Crews have also re-engaged on the Napias Creek Fire, cooling hot spots and securing the fire’s edge.

Garden Fire

Operations: Firefighters continue to patrol the Salmon River and Panther Creek corridors. There is still interior smoke, especially in heavy fuels such as logs, stumps, and trees. Light fuels such as grass have yet to recover sufficiently after the rain and snow to carry fire. Crews will continue to monitor the Garden fire and engage if necessary.

Additional Information

Weather: Sunday should feature another 4 to 8 degree warmup with afternoon temperatures 45 to 65 degrees, humidity about 5% points lower at 35 to 45%, and continued southwest winds, slightly stronger at 6 to 12 mph on ridges, gusting to 20 mph. The next low to affect weather is still expected Monday, with only about 25% change of precipitation and wind gusting up to 38 mph as the lows cold front crosses central Idaho

Smoke: For smoke information, please go to: https://www.airnow.gov/education/what-you-can-do/, or  https://outlooks.airfire.org/outlook/ded7837a 

Closures: The Salmon‐Challis National Forest has implemented a separate and reduced Red Rock and Garden Fire Closure, Order Number: 04‐13‐24‐027 and Order Number 04-13-24-028, effective as of 8:00 pm, Wednesday, October 16, 2024. https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/scnf/alerts-notices 

Safety: A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the Red Rock and Garden fire areas, which includes uncrewed aircraft systems or drones. Reminder that if you fly we can’t, unauthorized drone flights pose serious risks to firefighter and public safety and the effectiveness of wildfire suppression operations. 

Please stay out of the fire area. There is still active fire behavior in the fire area. There are multiple roads and bridges that have been destroyed or are impassable. The updated forest closure notice that encompasses both the Red Rock Fire and Garden Fire areas includes multiple road and area closures. Barricade closures will be posted at road intersections and forest boundaries. 

Evacuations: For evacuation information in Lemhi County regarding both the Red Rock and Garden fires please go to: https://www.lemhicountyidaho.org/emergency-management-department.