Crews battle three large Southwest Idaho fires; trails close near Salmon

Boise-area residents awoke again on Friday morning to smoke-filled skies. Despite cooler temperatures in the Treasure Valley, wildfires throughout Southwest Idaho continue to scorch acres of trees in their paths.

U.S. Forest Service crews closed trails near Salmon and evacuated some of the area, as the Moose Fire continued to burn 17 miles north of the town. The Bureau of Land Management closed all land it manages near Salmon. And crews also continued to monitor the fire that’s encroaching on parts of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area, including Alturas Lake, near Sun Valley.

Firefighters expected to contain the fire on Brundage Mountain by Friday, according to the Forest Service.

The three fires near Lake Cascade, the Sawtooth mountain range and Salmon in Central Idaho are still active, according to the U.S. Forest Service, but crews are making progress in holding the fires so they don’t threaten structures.

Aside from the fires near Boise, three fires in northwest Idaho and eastern Oregon are the major contributors to the poor air quality in the Treasure Valley — the Double Creek and Nebo Fires in Oregon and the Ten Mile Fire in Idaho.

Moose Fire near Salmon

Moose Fire, near Salmon, forced evacuations north of Salmon on Wednesday. The fire grew 15,000 acres on Wednesday night, according to the Forest Service, and has burned through a total of 122,666 acres. Crews lost some water pumps and tanks in the blaze, but no firefighters were injured.

The Forest Service said the fire encroached on nearly 500 acres of the Salmon Municipal Watershed. Crews are dedicated to protecting structures in the watershed and north and west of Salmon, the agency said.

Thursday’s humidity and cooler temperatures helped contain the blaze. Crews planned to hold the fire north of the watershed on Friday and clear roads for access, the Forest Service said in a news release.

Four Corners Fire

The Four Corners Fire burned a total of 13,703 acres since it started nearly a month ago. The fire is burning west of Lake Cascade in the Payette and Boise national forests, across three counties, Adams, Gem and Valley.

On Thursday fire activity was low, according to the Forest Service, but as humidity decreased and winds increased, so did the flames. Wednesday’s storms were not enough to contain the fire, the Forest Service said.

“A fire of this size, in this fuel type, requires a significant and persistent winter storm to completely cool the larger fuels like logs and stumps,” the Forest Service said in a news release.

Crews increased fire containment along the eastern and southwestern edges. While the southeastern edge of the fire, along Willow Creek, posed a challenge for firefighters, they are making progress on containing the fire in that area, the Forest Service said.

Ross Fork Fire

The Ross Fork Fire started last month near Sun Valley and grew over Labor Day weekend after high winds, according to the Forest Service. The fire has since moved west toward the north fork of Ross Creek, and north toward Jake’s Gulch and Alturas Lake Creek.

The blaze crossed to the east side of Idaho 75 on Tuesday, but firefighters were able to contain it after it burned 800 acres east of the highway. On Wednesday, the fire grew east of Alturas Lake, and the Forest Service ordered communities to evacuate the area.

Crews planned to work near Smiley Creek and Alturas Lake on Friday to monitor, access and put out fire spots as the Ross Fork Fire threatened areas in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. Crews may use helicopters to dump buckets of water on the fire, the Forest Service said.

Rainbow Fire

The Rainbow Fire, which burned on Brundage Mountain in McCall, didn’t grow Thursday evening, according to a news release from Brundage Mountain Resort.

Since it started on Wednesday from a lightning strike, crews have only allowed the fire to grow 3.8 acres. The fire burned north along the ridge line, then dropped into Hidden Valley to the west.

Crews plan to fully contain the 5-acre fire Friday, the Forest Service said.

Lightning-sparked Idaho wildfires include Rainbow Fire at Brundage ski area

Update: Firefighters help residents flee Boise apartment blaze. Two people in hospital