Three years after the Castle Rock Fire seared nearly 50,000 acres around Ketchum, valley residents on Sunday got a grim reminder of the devastation. Smoke filled the valley, as wildfires tore through forest and grasslands to the north and the south.
Though the Banner Fire near Stanley is still burning, it's actually not as large as crews previously thought.
The fire is located about 15 miles west of Stanley in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, and was estimated at 2,010 acres as of Monday evening. New estimates place the fire at about 1,600 acres, according to BLM spokeswoman Mallory Eils.
Eils said Tuesday that the 372 firefighters on the ground were focusing on containing the southern edge of the fire and keeping the blaze from reaching Highway 21 and Marsh Creek Road. The highway was closed on Saturday just five miles from the edge of the fire, though crews had opened one lane of the road by Monday afternoon.
A 30-minute delay is estimated at the partial closure, and Eils said the road might close entirely depending on fire conditions. The entire road was closed for about half an hour Monday. The Lola Campground, the Marsh Creek Trailhead and Cape Horn Road were closed Tuesday and were scheduled to remain so until further notice.
There is no containment estimate for the Banner Fire as of yet. Hotshot crews from the Montana, Utah and Nevada BLM offices are helping Idaho firefighters. Eils said that the hot, dry weather is not ideal for fire containment, but winds had dropped by Tuesday.
"Those winds are what really help drive a fire," Eils said. "Not having that wind, it's really helping fire crews make progress."
Eils said the fire was likely caused by lightning, due to the storm activity in the region. The remoteness of the location makes a human-caused fire unlikely, she said.
The Long Butte Fire west of Hagerman is still raging, expanding to 327,852 acres as of Tuesday morning. This fire caused the smoke that blanketed the Wood River Valley on Sunday, though winds have shifted since.
The Long Butte is notable not only for its size, but because it has burned about three-quarters of the Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument.
The monument was closed Sunday and will be closed until further notice. Officials at the monument say damage to the beds is being evaluated by a paleontologist.
BLM spokeswoman Barbara Bassler said Tuesday that there is no containment estimate for the fire. Three crews, eight helicopters, 75 engines and six water tenders were working on containment Tuesday.
The Deer Park Fire near Fairfield has been contained. Forest Service spokeswoman Julie Thomas said the fire had expanded to a little over 1,000 acres before being contained late last week. Several trails in the area have been reopened, including the Virginia Gulch, North Fork Lime Creek, Presidents and Deadwood trails.
Trails west of Iron Mountain, including the Beaver Creek Trail and the Gardner Gulch Trail, remain closed.
Katherine Wutz: kwutz@mtexpress.com
Dead trees go up in flames as the Banner Fire west of Stanley rages Wednesday. As of Tuesday morning, the fire had reached almost 1,600 acres, though officials said no structures were threatened.
