Federal, state, tribal and local fire personnel are encouraging residents and visitors to take precaution to prevent human-caused wildfires and to be aware of fire restrictions in place. 

Through Aug. 12, a multi-agency national Fire Prevention and Education Team will work in partnership with the Southwest Montana Zone, which represents fire personnel from county fire wardens, disaster and emergency services, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and multiple local agencies and communities to assist with educating residents and visitors about wildfire safety and how to prevent wildfires. 

“Everybody needs to be aware of the dangers of wildfire,” said Mark Wiles, team leader for the national fire prevention education team. “There are a lot of things people can do to protect homes, property, and public land from wildfire. During the ongoing focus on fire prevention, our goal is to provide the knowledge people need to keep our public lands and communities safe from wildfire.”  

Susan Granbery from Atlanta was at the Mineral County Fair and said false hope from rain can get people thinking that we’re all good. 

“We’re not,” she said. “Stage II fire restrictions are still in place in this area. We want people to be aware that we are still facing hot dry days just because the skies are not smokey and we’ve had moisture. One tip we share is that pulling your vehicle off the road into dry grass can very easily initiate a fire, and that is something g we all do without giving it a second thought. Check MTFireInfo.org for conditions and alerts as this is updated more often than other fire sites.”

This team is part of the Incident Command System, she said. Granbery is based in Atlanta and deployed when local Forest Service staff are overly busy with fires. The presence of Forest Service personnel is needed to reinforce fire safety and retell the fundamentals but also inform the public of the newest information on equipment, fire locations and closures. 

In celebration of the 80th birthday of Smokey Bear, a fire prevention celebration will be held at the Missoula County Fairgrounds. The public is invited to visit the fair booth hosted by the Missoula County Fire Prevention Association for information on fire restrictions in place in Missoula County and the eight-county area of Southwest Montana. 

Human-caused wildfires, associated with debris burning, vehicle-related fires and escaped campfires are responsible for most wildfires in Southwest Montana. The public is reminded to recreate responsibly while visiting public lands this summer. 

Extreme fire ratings mean just one spark can ignite quickly and start a wildfire.