Crews hold Sunset Fire at 2,700 acres

Cooler, rainy weather and overnight efforts have kept the Sunset Fire at 2,700 acres, Idaho Department of Lands officials said Saturday morning.

Engine crews spent Friday night actively patrolled the fire perimeter, extinguishing hotspots, and providing structure protection throughout the fire focusing efforts within the Talache Road and Butler Creek areas.

Saturday's cooler and wetter weather is expected to give firefighters a chance to make progress building fireline. Forest fuels remain dry, as the recent rainfall was not sufficient to significantly change fuel conditions, IDL officials said.

Dozer line has been completed along the southern flanks, with hose lays in place to supply water for mop-up operations. Crews will continue to improve and strengthen these containment lines.

On the western and northern flanks, hotshot crews will work to establish firelines in the very steep terrain. Aerial resources are assisting all firefighting efforts, including water and retardant drops to support crews on the ground. Structure protection teams will be actively assessing properties along Talache Road and Butler Creek, implementing point protection measures where needed. Additional crews have been assigned to reinforce work in this area. From the lakeshore, watercraft are being used to supply water to cool active flames.

The fire is actively burning in heavy timber and steep terrain making footing for ground forces treacherous with current weather conditions.

Currently, 295 personnel are assigned to the Sunset Fire.

A complex incident management team is expected to arrive Saturday afternoon and begin shadowing current incident organization to take over command.

Since being reported Wednesday evening, the fire has quickly grown. Within several hours it had gone from a half-acre to more than 50 and then almost 700 acres. By the next day, the fire had more than doubled and on Friday, had grown by more than 1,000 acres over the course of the day.

Evacuation orders remain in effect in the county.

On GO status are all residences east of E. Dufort Road, on Talache Road, including all side streets off Talache Road; residences on Raven Road, Crosswhite Road, Little Blacktail Road, and east of 2268 Sunset Road. USFS 630 off Blacktail Road (north of Blacktail), Butler Creek and Butler Creek Spur, from Mirror Lake, diagonal down to USFS 630, including Five Lakes Estates, Jupline Landing , the entire Ponderosa neighborhood and everything south of Talache Road. GO status means residents should leave immediately and head to safety.

SET notices are in effect for homes on Blacktail Road a quarter mile north of Little Blacktail, and everything north of Talache Road in Sagle. Residents should be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice.

READY advisories remain for all residents on Blacktail Road north of the ¼ mile and for the community of Bayview in neighboring Kootenai County.

Near Clark Fork, the Lightning Creek Fire again saw low fire activity, with creeping and smoldering in isolated areas. The fire remains at about 2,482 acres and has 138 personnel assigned to the fire, including five engines, a water tender, eight excavators, a feller buncher, two chippers and a hand crew.

Information: Lightning Creek Fire: bit.ly/4l5NhIB; Sunset Fire: bit.ly/45EwwP9