holy cow

[briannell]

my best to everyone, hope ya'll are safe.--rebecca



Montana Wildfire Overruns Firefighters Thu Aug 11, 2:41 PM ET



Three firefighters hunkered underneath emergency shelters as a wildfire burned over them but all three emerged safely, fire officials said Thursday.

The firefighters were among those battling a now-8,000-acre fire that made a run late Wednesday, forcing crews to retreat and shutting down a major power line in western Montana.

Fire information officer Alan Barbian said the three firefighters "deployed their fire shelters as they were trained" when it was clear they were in danger. All three escaped without any injuries and returned to their camp Wednesday night.

"The fire shelters worked," Barbian said Thursday. The lightweight, fireproof tents "did what they're supposed to, and we have three people alive because of it."

He said high wind advanced the fire more than four miles and doubled its size. The fire started last week along Interstate 90.

The fire shut down power circuits capable of carrying enough electricity for two Seattle-size cities, said Alan Hansen, a Bonneville Power Administration spokesman in Portland, Ore. However, the lines were carrying only a fraction of their capacity and service was not interrupted.

In Washington state, Gov. Christine Gregoire was scheduled to sign an emergency declaration to help fight wildfires in that state, where at least a half-dozen large fires were burning Thursday.

The governor's office gave no early details on the scope of the declaration. Such orders activate state resources, including potential use of the National Guard to help firefighting crews.

Firefighters reported slow, steady progress on a 42,000-acre wildfire that has burned more than 100 cabins near Pomeroy, in the southeastern part of the state. About 1,400 firefighters and support personnel were assigned to the fire and had it 40 percent contained, fire spokesman Greg Smith said.

A new fire in Lincoln County prompted the evacuation of about 20 homes, said Andrew Stenbeck, a Department of Natural Resources spokesman. The fire was about 1,500 acres.

The National Interagency Fire Center said 33 large fires, totaling 222,510 acres, were burning, mostly in Western states. So far this year, wildfires have charred 5.5 million acres nationwide, compared with 5.6 million acres at the same time last year.

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On the Net:

National Interagency Fire Center: http://www.nifc.gov




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