Next 48 Hours Key To Fire Fight Fires Reported In Every North Idaho County; Over 80 Blazes Still Burning

More fires and the potential for windy weather had firefighters stretched across North Idaho on Sunday, closing some areas for safety reasons.

About 86 fires were burning in North Idaho, causing officials to worry as flames get closer to homes. Though most all were small, fires had emerged in every county in North Idaho by Sunday night.

Because of possible winds on the way, the next 48 hours are crucial to the fires’ growth, said Kerry Arneson, fire information officer.

“The fires are growing enough that we are short on resources,” Arneson said.

The most recent blazes, including two small fires at the summit of Fourth of July Pass in Kootenai County, were created by lightning. Crews responded to the summit fires and dropped water on them.

Further north, roads and hiking trails in the Lunch Peak area were closed Sunday by the Idaho Panhandle National Forests for public safety. A fire northeast of Lake Pend Oreille in the Cabinet Mountains had grown to about 100 acres. The fire is burning toward Lake Darling, Gem Lake and the Lake Estelle area.

Only about half of the fires in North Idaho have firefighters tending to the flames. Fires near cities or other communities are top priority, Arneson said.

A fire burning in the McQuade Gultch area, two miles southwest of Clarks Fork, Idaho, has burned about 10 acres since Saturday.

Officials responded immediately to the fire because of a nearby subdivision and other homes in the area. Crews were redirected from other fires to concentrate on the area, according to David Cobb, Forest Service fire information officer. The closest threatened home is about a half-mile away from the flames, Arneson said.

Strong winds could cause fires to shift immediately and threaten communities, Arneson said.

Twenty-four other fires were burning in the mountains east of Lake Pend Oreille, to the north and south of Clark Fork. About 175 acres have burned so far, Cobb said.

“We’ve asked for more folks, but we’re not too optimistic,” Cobb said.

Forty firefighters, six engines, two bulldozers and one helicopter worked on the fires in Clark Fork on Sunday. Crews are hard to come by because of fires in Montana.

Officials have also closed the Moose Lake and Moose Mountain areas because fires there are unattended. Fire officials sent personnel to the area Sunday to get a dozen hikers and huckleberry pickers to leave the area.

Firefighters continued to battle a 20-acre fire in Skookum, 15 miles east of Coeur d’Alene. Three helicopters and one tanker have used smoke drops and water there. The initial fire crews are still working there, Arneson said.

“They’re tired, but they’ve got good morale.”

This sidebar appeared with the story: MEETING Fire questions

Four public meetings are scheduled for 7:30 tonight so officials can address any questions residents may have.

Information about possible evacuations will be available for people living close to the fires.

The meetings will be held in at the Bonners Ferry Fire Hall, the Sandpoint City Hall council chambers; the Clark Fork Senior Center at Tenth and Cedar; and at Sunnyside Elementary School on Bunker Avenue in Kellogg.