Okanogan
Complex Fire Update
Rocky Mountain Incident
Management Team - Todd Pechota, Incident Commander
Information Center: 509-850-0083
Hours of operation: 7 am – 9
pm
Email: okanogancomplexfire@gmail.com
Aug. 24, 2015
8 pm
Current Situation: The Okanogan Complex grew to
258,339 acres; containment is up to 15 percent. Suppression efforts made good
progress today even though heavy smoke impaired visibility and air support was
unable to operate. While the high level
inversion kept fire activity somewhat subdued there were many areas of high
fire activity.
A
Red Flag warning remains in effect with winds primarily from the southwest. Heavy
smoke is expected to cover the fire area tonight and firefighters were
cautioned to watch for impacts to breathing.
Travel on the roads will also be slowed due to limited sight distances.
Tunk Block Fire: The fire was active on the
north end where work was done on an indirect line along the northwest
side. On the northeast side efforts were
successful in keeping the fire out of the Aeneas Valley. A spot fire along the
Omak Lookout Road was successfully lined; crews patrolled the road throughout
the day. Direct line construction around
the south end tied lines together and crews started to strengthen them and
patrol. Highway 155 is open, we ask the
public to be cautious when driving as fire crews are still operating in the
area.
The Lime Belt, Blue Lake,
and Beaver Lake Fires: There continues to be active fire, particularly in the northeast corner
and the Wright Mountain area where the fires continue to merge. Crews worked to
construct indirect line between the two fingers west of Wright Mountain; other
crews looked for ways to go direct and minimize fire growth. Direct line was
constructed in the Conconully area as structure protection continued.
Twisp River Fire: Lines on the north, east,
and south, continue to hold. Crews and
dozers tied the line together on the west side and began burnout operations to
solidify the line.
Nine Mile Fire: The fire is 95 percent
contained and remains in monitor status.
Night Shift: The fire is expected to have pockets of active
burning. Priorities for the night shift
are focused on structure protection at numerous locations around the fire. Particular attention will be paid to
structures along Highways 20 and 155, the B&O and Columbia River Roads,
Tonasket, and along Salmon Creek.
Weather: The Red Flag warning is
still in effect; and active fire may occur where valleys are aligned with the
winds. Smoke will continue to be heavy throughout the night as the high level
inversion persists. Winds will be
variable. Firefighters and the public
are cautioned to be aware if they experience difficult breathing and take steps
to minimize exposure and seek medical help.
Evacuations and Closures: The public is encouraged to
contact the Okanogan Emergency Operations Center to learn how to register for
automated phone messages in the event of evacuation notices being issued for
particular neighborhoods. Contact emergency staff at 509-422-7348 or the Colville
Tribal Emergency Management Center at 507-634-2105.
Media Briefings: Media briefings will be held at 11 am daily at Okanogan
County Fairgrounds.
Fire Statistics as of Sunday:
Location: Eleven miles northwest of
Omak, WA Start Date: August 14, 2015
Complex Size: 258,339 acres Complex Percent Contained: 15
Twisp
River: 10,503 acres Total Personnel: 1,345
Tunk Block: 133,410 acres
Lime Belt/Blue Lake and Beaver Lake: 109,706
Nine Mile: 4,720 acres
Places
to get additional information:
Twitter: #OkanoganComplex
The Rocky Mountain IMT has a
Facebook page dedicated to “Thank You’s to the firefighters working on the fire
line. Visit the page at https://www.facebook.com/RockyMtn.Type1.IMT.PIOs
Spanish Language Information: (509) 422-2422
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