Pine Gulch Fire Update

Wednesday August 12, 2020 – 10:00 am
Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black
Troy Hagan, Incident Commander
Information Office: (970) 628-0130
Media Line: (970) 812-3706
Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Red Flag Conditions Push Pine Gulch Past 50,000 Acres

Current Situation: The Pine Gulch Fire grew to 51,455 acres on Tuesday and remains 7% contained. The fire was very active on Tuesday as it continued moving northeast. In addition to activity on the northeast head of the fire, there was also increased activity on the northwestern flank as the fire moved northeast across the 200 road and north over western Cow Ridge. There was some activity on the western end of the North Dry Fork (200) road in an area inaccessible to crews. That area is being monitored and is being addressed by bucket drops from helicopters. Overnight, night shift crews successfully conducted a firing operation south of the lines constructed along part of the 204 road and continued structure protection work on areas north of Kimball Mountain. On Wednesday, crews in Division A will be holding the southern perimeter along X ½ road. Divisions Z and G will continue their firing operations, as conditions allow, between North Dry Fork (200) road and the X ½ road on the southeast edge of the fire. The Roan Group will continue structure protection along areas north of the fire and will be monitoring the burn operation completed last night. As of this morning, the fire had not yet reached Roan Creek. Conditions over the Pine Gulch Fire are not expected to improve on Wednesday. Like yesterday, humidity will be low, temperatures high, and winds consistent through the day with gusts in the afternoon. The fire is expected to be very active again today.

 
Weather & Fuel Conditions: A Red Flag Warning is in effect for the fire area again today. Temperatures are expected to reach 90 degrees over the fire and relative humidity is expected to drop as low as 6%. Winds today are expected to be similar to yesterday with down valley winds at 13-17 mph with gusts up to 27 mph. With the winds added to the already hot and dry conditions, there is a possibility for extreme, wind-driven fire behavior and high rates of spread, as we saw yesterday.

 
Closures and Evacuations: Garfield County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for residents on Roan Creek (204) road, Clear Creek (211) road, Carr Creek (207) road and Brush Creek (209) road on Sunday night. Garfield County issued an evacuation order for residences on CR 202 on Saturday. For more information on evacuation orders, please visit https://garfieldcounty.net/. There is a road closure in effect on Roan Creek Road (204) at North Dry Fork (200) road; that closure is being staffed by a Sheriff’s deputy.
 

Air Quality: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has issued an Air Quality Health Advisory for western Mesa County and Garfield County. A smoke outlook for the Pine Gulch Fire is available where this update is posted and at https://fires.airfire.org/outlooks/WesternColorado. Continued widespread smoke from the Pine Gulch fire will impact many parts of Colorado on Wednesday. Areas affected downwind from the fires North to Meeker, along the I-70 corridor, and as far east as the Front Range region and the eastern plains. This will bring periods of mainly ‘moderate’ to ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’ levels of smoke to areas northeast of the fire including Garfield County and Rio Blanco County, however brief periods of heavy smoke will also be possible. For more information on smoke levels, please visit https://airnow.gov.

 
Emergency Alerts: Both Mesa and Garfield counties have emergency alert systems to alert citizens - by cell or land line phone - about emergencies, evacuations, and other important community news. To sign up for alerts in Garfield County, please visit garco911.com. For Mesa County alerts, please visit bit.ly/Emergency_Alerts.

 
Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Pine Gulch Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.
 

 Pine Gulch Fire Statistics:Size: 51,455 acres
Containment: 7%
Total Personnel: 658
Location: Approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, CO
Reported: July 31, approximately 5:15 p.m.
Cause: Lightning

For More Information:Information Office: (970) 628-0130,
8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov
InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6906/
 Facebook: https://facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO
Interactive Fire Map: https://arcg.is/W0izr
 Smoke Outlook: https://fires.airfire.org/outlooks/WesternColorado 

 

 Pine Gulch Fire Update
Tuesday August 11, 2020 – 11:00 am

 

Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black
Troy Hagan, Incident Commander  
Information Office: (970) 628-0130
 Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Pine Gulch Fire Grows on Monday, Red Flag Warning on Tuesday

 
Current Situation: The Pine Gulch Fire grew to 36,449 acres on Monday and remains 7% contained. The fire moved up the south slope of Kimball Mountain late yesterday and is currently backing down into the Roan Creek drainage. Crews aircraft, and dozers will be working along Roan Creek (204) road today constructing fire line along the road in anticipation of the fire’s continued progress north-northeast. Additional crews in the ‘Roan Group’ will be working on structure protection around structures and values at risk along Roan Creek (204) road, Clear Creek (211) road, Carr Creek (207) road and Brush Creek (209) road on Tuesday.  
  The fire continued to be active on the north side of Horse Mountain as it continued advancing north and east along the North Dry Fork (200) road. The western end of the 200 road is being addressed with bucket drops from helicopters. Crews in Divisions A and G will continue their firing operations, as conditions allow between North Dry Fork (200) road and the X ½ road. A night shift with two divisions continued day shift’s efforts with structure protection north of the fire and conducting burn operations as conditions and fire behavior allow. An additional Type 1 helicopter is assigned to the fire, bringing the total to four. Aerial resources will be used again today to assist efforts on the ground.  
 
Weather & Fuel Conditions: Humidity will decrease through the day today with an expected minimum relative humidity as low as 6%. Temperatures are expected to be 85-88 degrees. Winds along the ridges will continue out of the west-southwest in the morning, then shift midday to 13-17 mph out of the east-southeast with gusts up to 28 mph. With the winds added to the already hot and dry conditions, there is a possibility for extreme, wind-driven fire behavior and high rates of spread today.  
 
Closures and Evacuations: Garfield County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for residents on Roan Creek (204) road, Clear Creek (211) road, Carr Creek (207) road and Brush Creek (209) road on Sunday night. Garfield County issued an evacuation order for residences on CR 202 on Saturday. For more information on evacuation orders, please visit https://garfieldcounty.net/. There is a new road closure in effect on Roan Creek Road (204) at Kimball Creek Road (202); that closure is being staffed by Garfield County Sheriff’s Office.  
 
Air Quality: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has issued an Air Quality Health Advisory for western Mesa County and Garfield County. An Air Resource Advisor is now assigned to the Pine Gulch Fire and will be producing a daily smoke outlook, which is posted with this update and at https://fires.airfire.org/outlooks/WesternColorado.  
Today, widespread smoke from the Pine Gulch fire is expected impact many parts of Colorado Tuesday and Tuesday Night into Wednesday. Areas affected downwind from the fires along the I-70 corridor in central Colorado and as far east as the Front Range region and the eastern plains. For more information on smoke and smoke impacts, please visit https://airnow.gov.  
 
Emergency Alerts: Both Mesa and Garfield counties have emergency alert systems to alert citizens - by cell or land line phone - about emergencies, evacuations, and other important community news. To sign up for alerts in Garfield County, please visit garco911.com. For Mesa County alerts, please visit bit.ly/Emergency_Alerts.

 

Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Pine Gulch Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.  

Pine Gulch Fire Statistics:

Size: 36,449 acres

Containment: 7%

Total Personnel: 589

Location: Approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, CO

Reported: July 31, approximately 5:15 p.m.

Cause: Lightning

For More Information:

Information Office: (970) 628-0130, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6906/

Facebook: https://facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO

Interactive Fire Map: https://arcg.is/W0izr

 

Pine Gulch Fire Update 
Monday August 10, 2020 – 1:00 p.m.  

Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black 
Troy Hagan, Incident Commander   
Information Office: (970) 628-0130 
Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

Pine Gulch Fire Continues Northeast Amid Dry, Windy Conditions 

Current Situation: By Monday morning, the Pine Gulch Fire grew to 29,425 acres according to an overnight infrared flight. On Sunday, the fire was active from the pre-dawn hours through the day, primarily on Horse Mountain. Fuels remained critically dry and winds out of the southwest continued pushing the fire northeast through the day. The fire burning on Cow Ridge continued working downslope to Kimball Creek and spotted across the Kimball Creek (202) road late yesterday afternoon. The fire on the north side of 202 grew to approximately 300 acres and is located south face of Kimball Mountain. Firefighters actively fought the fire on the south side of Kimball Mountain into early Monday morning. One old, abandoned structure was burned on Sunday afternoon in the Kimball Creek drainage. The Pine Gulch Fire remains 7% contained.
On Monday, Division A will patrol and mop up the containment line along the X ½ road. Crews in Division G will be working with crews in Division Z looking for opportunities to secure the fire between the X ½ road/222 and the dozer lines constructed along the east end of the North Dry Fork (200) road. Other crews, called the Kimball Group, will continue working on structure protection in the Kimball Creek drainage and assessing values at risk north of the fire’s current location. Crews will be assessing containment options along the Roan Creek (204) road through the day today. A night shift with two divisions has been established; those divisions are known as J and V (not currently shown on map). Crews assigned to those groups will be working overnight to protect values at risk in the fire area and conducting burn operations as conditions and fire behavior allow. Aerial resources will be used again today to assist efforts on the ground. 
 
Weather & Fuel Conditions: Humidity recovery was poor again overnight although fire behavior was less extreme than was seen on previous overnight shifts. Humidity will decrease through the day today with an expected minimum relative humidity as low as 7%. Temperatures are expected to be 86-89 degrees. Winds out of the southwest are expected to be consistent through the day with gusts as high as 18 mph. If winds and slope align over the fire, there is a possibility for extreme fire behavior and high rates of spread again today. 
 
Closures and Evacuations: Garfield County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for residents on Roan Creek (204) road, Clear Creek (211) road, Carr Creek (207) road and Brush Creek (209) road on Sunday night. Garfield County issued an evacuation order for residences on CR 202 on Saturday. For more information on evacuation orders, please visit https://garfieldcounty.net/. There is a new road closure in effect on Roan Creek Road (204) at Kimball Creek Road (202); that closure is being staffed by Garfield County Sheriff’s Office.
 
Air Quality: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE)  has issued an Air Quality Health Advisory for western Mesa County and Garfield County. Current air quality information is available on the Garfield County website at www.garfield-county.com/air-quality and updates on the Pine Gulch Fire are available at www.garfieldcounty.net. Information on the health impacts of wildfire smoke can be found on the county’s wildfire smoke page.
 
Emergency Alerts: Both Mesa and Garfield counties have emergency alert systems to alert citizens - by cell or land line phone - about emergencies, evacuations, and other important community news. To sign up for alerts in Garfield County, please visit garco911.com. For Mesa County alerts, please visit bit.ly/Emergency_Alerts. 
 
Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Pine Gulch Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.

Pine Gulch Fire Statistics: 
Size: 29,425 acres 
Containment: 7% 
Total Personnel: 535 
Location: Approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, CO 
Reported: July 31, approximately 5:15 p.m. Cause: Lightning 

For More Information: 
 Information Office: (970) 628-0130, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 
Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov 
InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6906/ 
Facebook: https://facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO 
Interactive Fire Map: https://arcg.is/W0izr 

 On Sunday, the #PineGulchFireCO grew to 25,026 acres. The fire was active from the pre-dawn hours through the day, primarily on Horse Mountain. Fuels remained critically dry and winds out of the southeast continued pushing the fire northeast through the day. The fire burning on Cow Ridge continued working downslope to Kimball Creek and pushed across the Kimball Creek Road (202) late this afternoon. The fire on the north side of 202 grew to approximately 300 acres and is located along the south face of Kimball Mountain.

Both aerial and ground resources have evaluated the fire across CR 202, and firefighters are actively fighting the fire on the south side of Kimball Mountain tonight in an attempt to contain the fire that crossed the road. Fire behavior so far tonight is less extreme than firefighters saw last night, and crews will remain engaged as long as it is safe to do so. Helicopters and airtankers also assisted fire fighters during the day.

In order to provide for firefighter and public safety, Garfield County Sheriff’s Office has issued evacuations for residents on Roan Creek Road (204), Clear Creek Road (211), Carr Creek Road (207) and Brush Creek Road (209). Emergency Management Operations personnel are evacuating residents door to door in the area. Garfield County emergency notifications were sent from Garfield County 911 dispatch as well. For further information on evacuations in the area, please visit https://garfieldcounty.net or Garfield County Sheriff's Office - Colorado.
  
 

Today at 5 p.m. we will hold a virtual public meeting.
 
Due to the limits on the number of attendees allowed in Zoom meetings, we prefer that those who have the ability, please view the meeting through the Pine Gulch Fire Facebook page. This is in an effort to keep as many non-Facebook spots open to the public as possible.

Viewers do not need a Facebook account to view the meeting – just close the prompt to log in or sign up and the entire page will be available. The live stream will appear at the top of the Pine Gulch Fire Facebook page a couple of minutes before 5:00.
 
For those who prefer not use Facebook, please email us and we will gladly send you the link to connect through Zoom.

WHEN: Today, August 9, 5 p.m.

WHERE: https://facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO (Live stream will appear at the top of the feed a couple of minutes before 5 p.m.)

WHAT: Members of Rocky Mountain Team Black and county officials will be providing an update on the Pine Gulch Fire.

We look forward to seeing you all there. If you have questions, please contact us by email or by phone at the contact information below.

Information Office: (970) 628-0130, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov

 Pine Gulch Fire Update
Sunday August 9, 2020 – 10:00 am

Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black
Troy Hagan, Incident Commander

Information Office: (970) 628-0130
Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Pine Gulch fire 7% Contained; More Challenging Weather Ahead

  Current Situation: The Pine Gulch Fire is now 7% contained despite another day of challenging conditions and a very active fire. The fire front worked its way down the north side of Cow Ridge but was largely sheltered from afternoon winds on Saturday. Crews continued work on fire lines constructed in the preceding days and utilizing firing operations where possible to secure the fires edge.   On Saturday, crews in Division A held and improved lines along the O 9/10 road and were successful in completing a firing operation to tie the road into the southwest corner of the fire perimeter. In Division D, crews completed lines connecting the northwest corner of the fire perimeter to the west end of the North Dry Fork Road (CR 200). In Division G, firefighters completed structure assessments along the Kimball Creek drainage CR 202 and monitored lines along CR 200 south of High Lonesome Ranch. Division Z completed line prep along on Mesa County X ½ road/Garfield County CR 222 to connect with Division G’s indirect lines and structure protection along the 200 road.   On Sunday, Division A will patrol the containment line and hold fire lines constructed on Saturday. Division D will continue working on the west end of CR 200. Crews in Division G will be working with crews in Division Z looking for opportunities to secure the fire between the X ½ road/CR 222 and the dozer lines constructed along the east end of CR200. Crews will also be working in the Kimball Creek drainage (CR 202) to get structure protection in place and engage with the fire if it moves from Cow Ridge into the Kimball drainage. Aerial resources will be used again today to assist efforts on the ground.   Weather & Fuel Conditions: Humidity recovery was poor again overnight. Humidity will decrease through the day today with an expected minimum relative humidity as low as 8%. Temperatures are expected to be 85-88 degrees. Winds out of the southwest are again expected to pick up to 15 mph through the day. If winds and slope align over the fire, there is a possibility for extreme fire behavior again today.   Closures and Evacuations: There is a road closure in place on County Road (CR) 200 at the Mesa-Garfield County line to prevent nonessential traffic from entering the fire area. A second closure on CR 202 (Kimball Creek) at CR 204 (Roan Creek) was put in place on Saturday.  Garfield County issued an evacuation order for residences on CR 202 and a pre-evacuation order for all residences on county roads 204, 207, 209, and Clear Creek Road. For more information on evacuation orders, please visit https://garfieldcounty.net/.  

Emergency Alerts: Both Mesa and Garfield counties have emergency alert systems to alert citizens - by cell or land line phone - about emergencies, evacuations, and other important community news. To sign up for alerts in Garfield County, please visit garco911.com. For Mesa County alerts, please visit bit.ly/Emergency_Alerts.

 

Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Pine Gulch Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.  

Pine Gulch Fire Statistics: Size: 23,882 acres Containment: 7% Total Personnel: 472 Location: Approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, CO Reported: July 31, approximately 5:15 p.m. Cause: Lightning

For More Information: Information Office: (970) 628-0130, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6906/ Facebook: facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO

 Pine Gulch Fire pre-evacuations announced; some residences evacuatedFire is in far western Garfield County above Grand JunctionResidences along County Road 204 in Garfield County are under notification of pre-evacuations; they are advised to pack necessary items and be ready to leave on a moment's notice.As the fire moves northeast, pre-evacuations are being announced to residences along County Road (CR) 204, including residences on Clear Creek Road, CR 209, and CR 207, to allow safe egress prior to advancement of the fire. Approximately eight residences are on County Road 204, and Emergency Management Operations personnel visited them last night in person to discuss the fire's advancement, operations and preparations. If evacuations are ordered, residences will again be visited in person by emergency management personnel to ensure they are aware of the need to leave quickly.A small number of residences have been evacuated on County Roads 200 and 202 via in person notifications. Electricity to affected properties was disabled prior to the evacuations for safety.Emergency notifications to affected residents will also be done through Garfield County Emergency Notification System - subscribe at garco911.com. Pine Gulch Fire updates are posted on Inciweb, and pre-evacuation and evacuation information will be posted on the Garfield County Sheriff's Office facebook page, and the county's emergency feed at garfieldcounty.net.

Per the Garfield County Sheriff:

There is a road closure in place on County Road (CR) 200 at the Mesa-Garfield County line to prevent nonessential traffic from entering the fire area. A second closure on CR 202 (Kimball Creek) at CR 204 (Roan Creek) was put in place on Saturday, August 8. The presence of non-fire traffic within the area is a distraction and a hazard to firefighters. There are no evacuations in place at this time.

 Natural gas wells are one of the many values that firefighters on the Pine Gulch Fire are working to protect. Gas wells are small, typically consisting of only a few pipes above the ground and occasionally a tank nearby. These structures blend in with the surrounding landscape and vegetation.

There are eight natural gas wells in the vicinity of the Pine Gulch Fire and two of those were producing gas when the fire started. On Sunday, August 2, the two producing wells’ operators ‘shut in” the wells, meaning no gas was being released or essentially that they were shut off.

Firefighters were able to remove vegetation from around the wells to prevent significant damage to the infrastructure at these sites prior to fire coming near the well sites. The fire has now burned around at least three of the gas wells with no harm being done to them. Officials do not anticipate fire activity having any affect on future use of these gas wells and fire managers are working closely with all of the Oil and Gas producers to determine if any additional precautions need to take place.
   

 Pine Gulch Fire Update
Saturday August 8, 2020 – 10:00 am

Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black
Troy Hagan, Incident Commander 

Information Office: (970) 628-0130 Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov

Extreme Fire Behavior Pushes Pine Gulch Fire Past 20,000 Acres

  Current Situation: Driven by high temperatures, extremely low humidity, and strong afternoon winds, the Pine Gulch Fire grew to 20,089 acres on Friday. On Friday afternoon, the fire moved down Forshay Gulch on the north side of Horse Mountain to the 200 Road. The fire then moved east along the 200 Road and established itself in both Lion and Bledsaw Gulch. Two crews working along the 200 Road attempted to keep the fire on the south side of the 200 road as it pushed to the northeast, but the fire quickly outpaced the crews and crossed to the north side of the 200 road. Firefighters on the north side of the fire disengaged and retreated to safety zones while the fire continued pushing northeast, crossing 200 road near High Lonesome Ranch.   Friday’s swing shift was successful in completing firing operations that connected the O 9/10 road south of the fire to the southwest corner of the fire’s perimeter. On Saturday, crews in Division A will hold and improve lines along the O 9/10 Road. In Division D, on the west side of the fire, crews will continue constructing line to the east with hand crews and bulldozers to complete the fireline at the west end of the North Dry Fork Road (200 road). Crews in Division Z on the southeast side of the fire will continue indirect line construction on the X ½ Road for future suppression operations. Firefighters in Division G on the northeast side of the fire will continue improving the prep work on the 200 road and structure protection operations. Crews will also be accessing Cow Ridge from the Kimball Creek drainage (202 road) to assess structures and opportunities for future suppression actions for the fire that crossed the 200 road on Friday. Aerial resources will be used again today to assist efforts on the ground.   Weather & Fuel Conditions: Humidity recovery was poor overnight, only increasing to approximately 17%. Humidity will decrease through the day today with an expected minimum relative humidity as low as 9%. Temperatures are expected to be 85-88 degrees. Winds out of the southwest are again expected to pick up midday into the afternoon with gusts up to 20 mph. If winds and slope align over the fire, there is a possibility for extreme fire behavior again today.   Closures and Evacuations: There is a road closure in place on Mesa County Road 200 at the Mesa-Garfield County line to prevent nonessential traffic from entering the fire area. The presence of non-fire traffic within the area is a distraction and a hazard to firefighters and members of the public. There are no evacuations in place at this time.   

Fire Restrictions: Fire danger across the region is rated as very high. Both Mesa County and Garfield County have Stage 1 Fire Restrictions. BLM lands within the Grand Junction Field Office are also under Stage 1 Restrictions. To learn more about fire restrictions on BLM-managed lands in western Colorado, please visit https://go.usa.gov/xfVFY.

 

Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Pine Gulch Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.  

Pine Gulch Fire Statistics: Size: 20,089 acres Containment: 0% Total Personnel: 466 Location: Approximately 18 miles north of Grand Junction, CO Reported: July 31, approximately 5:15 p.m. Cause: Lightning

For More Information: Information Office: (970) 628-0130, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Email: 2020.PineGulch@firenet.gov InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6906/ Facebook: facebook.com/PineGulchFireCO