Forest Fire Management

There’s been a slight growth in the Lone Star Fire over the past few days, as crews continues to clear flammables in developed areas along the Grand Loop Road near Old Faithful.

Bad weather is good news, as heavy rain and thunderstorms halt the Lone Star Fire spread, and the Grand Loop Road between the developed Old Faithful area and West Thumb Junction is reopened.

More Lone Star Fire growth yesterday, as increased temperatures and gusty winds fueled an expansion to the east in Yellowstone National Park.

We’re in the prime Yellowstone fire season, so it’s no surprise that the Lone Star Fire growth is now measured at almost 800 acres, as it moves northeast and away from the developed Old Faithful area.

UPDATE: The new Lone Star Fire temporarily closed the Grand Loop Road south of Old Faithful — between Old Faithful and West Thumb, including the Craig Pass — on Saturday night at 10:30 p.m. due to smoke.

If it’s August, you know it’s Yellowstone fire season–and sure enough, with the fire danger high, we’ve seen the first two wildfires of the 2020 Yellowstone summer season.

The Yellowstone fire danger level has been downgraded to moderate, as cool weather and moisture in the air has mitigated the fire risk in Yellowstone National Park.

Well, that didn’t take long: since we first posted a story about the Brimstone Fire, it expanded from a single acre to 80 acres overnight, visible from many parts of Yellowstone National Park.

It’s been a relatively quiet fire season in Yellowstone despite a fire danger being assessed as high, and we have another small wildfire to note: the Brimstone Fire, located on the eastern shore of Yellowstone Lake.

With the Yellowstone fire danger now assessed as being high, National Park Service officials are monitoring two new wildfires: a small blaze one mile west of Dunraven Pass and a slightly larger incident in the remote Bechler District.