Lightning starts two fires east of Big Mountain

A lightning strike ignited two adjacent fires at about 4 p.m. today, Sept. 11. The Easton 1 and Easton 2 Fires are burning on a ridge located 2.3 miles east of Big Mountain. They are 1/10th acre and 1/4th acre in size and burning in timber with no road access.  

DNRC helitack crew was inserted this afternoon to begin construction of fire line with two helicopters conducting bucket operations. The crews plan to pull off of the line tonight and go back up in the morning, the DNRC Kalispell Unit reported. 

Also on Thursday, the size of the Hallowat Fire north of Big Mountain was updated from 34 to now 130 acres. The Hallowat Fire started on Sept. 2 and is located near the old Forks Lookout, about halfway between Whitefish and Polebridge.