Green Ridge and Lick Creek Fires - Update | Aug. 15, 2021 - 10 a.m.

 

Green Ridge and Lick Creek Fire Update

Sunday, August 15, 2021, 10:00 a.m.

 

Rocky Mountain Incident Management Team Black

Troy Hagan, Incident Commander

 

Green Ridge Fire Statistics: Size:  34,644 acres Containment:  15% Total Personnel: 505 Location: 30 miles east of Walla Walla Reported: July 7, 2021 Cause: Lightning

Lick Creek Fire Statistics: Size:  80,421 acres Containment:  97% Total Personnel: 28 Location: 20 miles southwest of Asotin, WA Reported: July 7, 2021 Cause: Lightning

Increased Winds Expected Today and Tomorrow Ahead of Cold Front

Current Situation: Green Ridge Fire: On Saturday, the Green Ridge Fire continued to move to the south, reaching the north side of Misery Ridge and the west side of Mount Misery. The fire grew to 34,644 acres and remains 15% contained. Crews have been patrolling and mopping up the fire’s perimeter along the Kendall Skyline Road on the fire’s southwest edge as well as along the 22 (4022) Road from Tucannon Road to the Lick Creek Fire perimeter. Crews have continued to search for pockets of heat and engage where it is safe to do so in Branch I on the northern and western edge of the fire. Fire activity was minimal on the north and west sides of the fire in divisions G, K, and M on Saturday. In Division P, on the south side of the fire, firefighters continued to scout for possible contingency lines.

 

Today, afternoon winds out of the southwest are expected to push the fire northeast towards established lines in Division M. Firefighters will be in place on the northern end of the fire to patrol existing lines and engage in any threats to the lines in Division M. Firefighters will secure and scout for additional contingency lines to the north of the fire in Division H and to the southeast of the Green Ridge fire perimeter in Division P. Some firefighting resources are starting to be positioned in Div P to begin constructing indirect fire lines in the coming days once scouting is complete.

 

Current Situation: Lick Creek Fire: The Lick Creek fire remains 80,421 acres and containment increased to 97%, with the remaining 3% of unsecured line on the southwest edge of the fire’s perimeter. The Lick Creek Fire currently has 2 two Type 3 engines, one Type 4 engine, one Type 6 engine, one bulldozer, one tactical water tender, and eight support water tenders assigned to the incident. On Saturday, favorable west-northwest winds pushed heat and smoke into the interior and away from established fire lines. Interior fuels continue to smolder within the fire perimeter with occasional torching. On Sunday, assigned resources will continue to improve and monitor containment lines, shifting to help firefighting efforts on Green Ridge where needed during periods of increased fire activity.

 

Weather & Smoke Information: Winds are expected to increase this afternoon ahead of a passing cold front. West southwest winds are expected to be 8-12 mph, with gusts to 20 mph. The wind is expected to clear the heavy smoke out of the area. Temperatures will be in the 80s along the ridges and in the mid-90s in the valley bottoms. Smoke information is available on Washington Smoke Blog at: https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/

 

Forest Closures: Closures are in place on the Umatilla National Forest. The forest closure for some areas on the Umatilla NF have been amended. The amended order reopened most Umatilla NF lands in Oregon. The order also closed all lands on the Walla Walla Ranger District in Washington; forest lands in the Pomeroy Ranger District will remain closed to entry. the order is available at https://go.usa.gov/xFyhn.

 

Evacuations: Garfield County currently has Level 1, 2 and 3 evacuations in place. Level 1 evacuations were added on Thursday for Grouse Flats in southern Garfield County. For more information on evacuations in Garfield County, please visit https://go.usa.gov/xFyM4. Columbia County currently has Level 3, Level 2, and Level 1 evacuations in place. Wallowa County, Oregon currently has Level 1 evacuations in place for Grouse Flats. An interactive fire map that shows evacuations and other important information is available at https://tinyurl.com/yv2sypd4.

 

Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Green Ridge Fire and Lick Creek Fire. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.

 

Green Ridge Fire Information: Information Office: (509) 542-7964 Email: 2021.GreenRidge@firenet.gov InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/GreenRidgeFire2021

Lick Creek Fire Information: Information Office: (509) 780-6238 Email: 2021.LickCreek@firenet.gov InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7615/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/LickCreekFire