The strategy to guide the fire to burned-out areas created by the Arnica Fire last fall and setting up control lines to the west seems to have paid off, as yesterday crews completed tying the fireline from the northern perimeter into the 2009 Arnica fire, leaving the main body of the Beach Fire tentatively secure and redirecting priority efforts to the numerous spot fires remaining outside the fireline. Active torching occurred in the pockets of heavy fuel and were suppressed with helicopter water drop support. Six 20 person fire crews continue to improve the fireline and locate/suppress spot fires. As a result, the fire is now 72 percent contained.
Today, fire crews will be working on the northern perimeter of the fire, suppressing the spot fires in that area. That work will be accomplished by two heavy, two medium, and one light helicopter remain available to support suppression activity.
Photos by Jess Secrest, Northern Rockies Type 2 Incident Management Team.
RELATED STORIES: Report from the Field: Beach Fire Stalls; Report From the Field: Beach Fire Grows Slightly; Beach Fire Up to 385 Acres; Containment Strategy Seems to Be Working; See the Yellowstone Beach Fire in Action From Mount Washburn; Report From the Field: Yellowstone Beach Fire Remains Steady; Yellowstone Beach Fire Spreads to 150 Acres; Another Fire Breaks Out in Yellowstone National Park
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