Middle Fork Fire Fact Sheet
Acres: 17,191
Incident Commander: Jeramy Dietz, Type 3 IMT
Fire Information: 970-439-4725
Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7153/
Today’s Situation: The Middle Fork Fire has burned out of the Mt. Zirkel Wilderness in a couple of places along the south and west flanks. The recent growth is mostly north and northwest, with minor growth south due to winds out of the south pushing the fire back onto itself. Management action points crossed have stimulated the Team to enact plans in place that use more direct tactics. Four fixed wing airtankers are scooping water out of Lake John and attacking the eastern and southern flanks. Please do not boat on Lake John so firefighting efforts can continue uninterrupted. Several more resources were ordered and are starting to arrive to act swiftly. There will be more engines and other equipment along or near the Buffalo Pass road, Dry Lake Trailhead (TH), Summit Park TH, Elk Park TH, and NFSR 314; please give firefighters space to do their work. The helicopters continue to drop water on the fire along the southwest, west and northwest flanks of the fire. Fire managers and the National Forest have increased the extent of the area closure to increase safety of public and firefighters. Please be aware of the additional trails and road that are closed now. Fire behavior today will continue to be very active until the cold front arrives. The incoming cold front is driving winds today with cooler weather on Sunday and the possibility of precipitation. Once the front moves through, temperatures will drop considerably which will cause humidities to rise and fire behavior to calm down. However, the extended forecast is predicting temperatures to return to the 70s by end of next week. There may be smoke in the Steamboat Springs area resulting from the Mullen, Cameron Peak and Middle Fork fires.
Today is opening day of first rifle season, so please be cautious when recreating near the area closure for your safety and the safety of the firefighters.
Weather: Mostly sunny skies with highs between 69-74 degrees and relative humidity of 14 - 19%. Winds are out of the south at 10 mph increasing to southwest winds with gusts around 25 mph in the afternoon. Mostly clear night skies with lows between 35-40 degrees and relative humidity of 47-52% with southwest winds at 10-12 mph.
Fire Behavior: Extreme with crowning and short-range spotting events in timbered areas.
Firefighting Resources: Approximately 104 personnel are assigned to the fire, including five helicopters (three Type 1, one type 2, and one Type 3), four single engine airtankers, and a fixed-wing air attack to help coordinate aerial operations.
Evacuations: There are no evacuation or pre-evacuation orders in effect. Not all management action points stimulate evacuations, however if the fire were to reach any pre-identified management action points that are evacuation related, it would trigger Routt County Sheriff’s Office to initiate pre-evacuation orders through their reverse-911 system. To sign up for alerts, visit http://routtcountyalerts.com. The county provides tips for wildfire preparedness, including planning for pets and livestock, on their website at http://www.co.routt.co.us/309/Fire-Safety-Tips-for-Rural-Residents.
Forest Closure: Routt National Forest has issued an area closure. See the Closure Map and Closure Order posted on Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7153/ for further details.
Fire Restrictions: Stage 2 Fire Restrictions are in effect in Routt and Jackson counties, on all of the Routt National Forest, and across much of Northwest Colorado.