Fire grows in size; photos and videos available
The
Baker's Camp Fire, located on the west side of
northern Boundary County near the end of the
Smith Creek Road, continues to burn. The size of
the fire was listed for several days as 35
acres; however on July 9, as crews made more
progress and safer access allowed for better
mapping, the fire was recalculated to be 44
acres in size.Burn area increases
Today, however, July 11, fire officials report actual growth of the fire. "Yesterday's fire activity brought flare-ups within the containment line that started spot fires across the line. With the use of fire retardant and helicopter bucket drops, crews were able to keep the spot fires from gaining significant growth," these officials state.
They now report the fire at 49 acres in size. Although 70% contained, the steep, rocky terrain prevents construction of adequate fireline, so aircraft are being used to help control spread of the fire.
In addition, a lightning storm that passed through the area last night (Friday, July 10) resulted in new fire starts. "These fires are being managed by the district office, and additional firefighters will be arriving to support the suppression effort," fire officials say.
This steep terrain makes fighting this fire challenging, according to fire officials.
Battling the fire
There are now 64 firefighters on the Baker's Camp Fire, but as noted above, additional firefighters are
anticipated. Multiple air resources continue to
be used in battling this fire, including several
helicopters for conducting water bucket drops,
and single engine air tankers for dropping fire
retardant.NewsBF will continue to report information on this fire in Boundary County as information becomes available.
Videos Available
The Idaho Panhandle National Forest has posted short videos of the Baker's Camp Fire, these videos courtesy of Mike Saint.
®The first is a 15 second video of a single engine air tanker "Fire Boss" dropping retardant on the Baker's Camp Fire. This video can be viewed by clicking here.
®The second video is a 10 second video showing a helicopter dropping water on the fire. This video can be viewed by clicking here.
Other fires
Lightning strikes in Boundary County on Friday evening resulted in additional smaller fires, including one on the north bench area about six miles from Bonners Ferry. A photograph of that fire is included with this story. Firefighting crews have attended to those smaller fires.
