Summary
The Red Eagle fire is within Blackfeet Tribal Trust Lands, Glacier National Park and privately owned property. Fire within the Blackfeet Tribal and Trust Lands has substantial economic impacts due to loss of timber, rangeland forage and wildlife habitat; it has the potential to impact residences, historic, prehistoric, and spiritual sites. Limited access and very steep terrain within Glacier National Park, areas with heavy fuels, low fuel moisture, and significant acreage of spotty burn on the eastern flanks, will continue to challenge suppression and control efforts. Fuels are very dry and extreme fire behavior can be expected once temperatures exceed 70 degrees, humidity is below 30% and wind speed is in excess of 6 mph. The normal season ending event for fire activity is not until the middle of September.
Basic Information
| Incident Type | Wildland Fire |
|---|---|
| Cause | Under Investigation |
| Date of Origin | 07/28/2006 at 1315 hrs. |
| Location | Near St Mary, MT |
| Incident Commander | Tom Heintz |
Current Situation
| Total Personnel | 187 |
|---|---|
| Size | 32,230 acres |
| Percent Contained | 100% |
| Estimated Containment Date | 09/15/2006 at 1800 hrs. |
| Fuels Involved | Mature to overmature forested lands, timber harvest units within tribal lands consisting of: sub-alpine fir, mixed conifer, transitioning to Douglas fir/shrub/grass along the Rocky Mountain front. (Most of the slash has been piled.) |
| Fire Behavior | Fire behavior east of US 89 was quiet again today as crews mop up in those areas. Occasional smoldering and individual tree torching within the perimeter were observed. Smoldering and creeping fire activity along the western flank of the fire on the shore of St Mary lake was observed. Fire activity is limited by topography in the upper regions of Red Eagle, Medicine Owl and Hudson Bay creeks within the National Park. |
| Significant Events | The majority of the fire perimeter was quiet today. The lower temperatures and increase in humidity gave suppression resources an excellent opportunity to secure containment lines. The Burned Area Rehabilitation (BAER)team has assembled and are in the process of gathering data for their assessment. |
Outlook
| Planned Actions | Crews will complete rehabilitation of hand and bulldozer suppression lines. The western fire perimeter will continue to be in patrol status. Vehicle accessible land, primarily east of Highway 89, will be patrolled and mopped up with engine resources. |
|---|---|
| Projected Movement | The cirque basins of Divide and Red Eagle Creeks within Glacier National Park may continue to smolder. |
| Growth Potential | Low |
| Terrain Difficulty | High. Access to some portions of the fire is hampered by rough terrain. |
| Containment Target | Containment targets were made based on resource availability and predicted weather conditions; therefore, it is likely that our targets will be met. |
| Remarks | There has been very little increase in fire perimeter. Management of the fire will be returned to the local jurisdictions on Sunday August 20, at 07:00 am. |
Weather
| Current Wind Conditions | 7-g mph SW |
|---|---|
| Current Temperature | 82 degrees |
| Current Humidity | 15 % |
