Montana Creek Fire Update for July 5th, 2019

7/5 4:45 From Alaska Wildland Fire Information: The Montana Creek Fire (#429) remains at an estimated 250 acres with 0% containment. There is a retardant line around 90 percent of the fire but the fire perimeter remains active in many places and firefighters are engaged in suppressing active fire behavior while also constructing control lines, according to the Alaska Division of Forestry. There is a marked decrease in fire activity today.

On Thursday, firefighters began cutting saw line and laying hose line to tie the fire into a slough on the east side of the fire. A bulldozers was used to begin constructing containment line on the north perimeter of the fire that will connect to the same slough.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Nanooks Wildland Fire Crew was added to the lineup of more than 100 personnel that are working on the fire on Thursday and the White Mountain Type 2 Initial Attack Crew from Fairbanks joined the effort today. The additional boots on the ground should bolster containment efforts. “

7/5 10:44 a.m.: Quick update from incident command: The fire did not grow overnight. Area residents may start smelling smoke in new areas due to a shift in the wind. Several crews are continuing to work the fire. Montana Creek Road is open to residents only. Area residents should remain prepared to evacuate in case the situation changes. Fire risk in the Northern Susitna Valley remains very high.

7/5 1st post: There have been no official updates on the Montana Creek Fire so far this morning. The last report from yesterday evening was that the fire was being held within the perimeter. If something changes, we will pass that information along.