The Huckleberry Ridge Fire, burning on Weyerhaeuser land 20 miles south of Pe Ell, has burned 301 acres and was 52% contained as of Thursday evening.
“The cooler and wetter weather conditions have greatly assisted the suppression efforts. Crew have made significant progress in the containment of the fire over the past 24 hours,” the Western Washington Type 3 Incident Management Team said in a news release on Thursday. “There is still (an) area of heat in and near the fire’s edge and these areas are being sought after and extinguished in order to fully secure the fire’s perimeter. Steep slopes and loose footing continue to hamper the suppression efforts, but firefighters are maintaining the physical effort needed to fully suppress the fire. ”
Officials expect fire containment to slowly increase as the days go on while mop-up is done along containment lines.
“Secure and mop up existing control lines is the focus. We are still constructing fire line in approximately 48% of the fire’s perimeter and initiating rehab efforts in areas that are fully extinguished,” the Incident Management Team said in a news release.
No structures have been threatened by the fire. Officials don’t anticipate there will be any road closures or evacuations for this fire, but the public is still asked to stay out of the area while crews continue working to contain the blaze. A temporary flight restriction over the fire area is in place.
A total of 349 personnel, including 12 hand crews and 24 engines/tenders, were working the fire as of Thursday.
The fire was first reported at 3:45 p.m. on Sept. 4. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
For updates, visit https://www.facebook.com/WWIMT or https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/wapcs-huckleberry-ridge-fire.
