7/19/2015 Newby Lake Fire Update

Yesterday’s Activities: The northern and northeast portions of the fire were patrolled by air, and no significant fire activity was detected. Firefighters continued to use heat sensing devices to find hot spots near the eastern perimeter of the fire to mop up hot spots. Crews tied fire line together at the southeast corner of the fire and constructed direct fire line west to the vicinity of Hells Hole. Contingency fire line within Nine Mile Creek was nearly completed. Branch Creek contingency line construction also progressed.

Today’s Activities: Firefighters will continue to scout out the location and construct direct fire line west of the Middle Fork of Toats Coulee Creek to the Tripod Fire scar. Hazard trees will be removed along the fire line to ensure firefighter safety. Air patrol of the northern and northeast sectors of the fire will be on-going. The contingency line in Nine Mile Creek and Branch Creek is expected to be completed by end of shift today. The Type 1 Pacific Northwest Incident Management Team #3 is planning to transition management of the fire to a smaller Type 3 Incident Management Team tomorrow. The Type 3 team is scheduled to assume management of the fire at 6:00 am on Tuesday.

Weather: Temperatures are predicted to increase to 80 degrees within the fire area. Winds will be out of the southeast 4-8 mph shifting to 5-9 mph out of the northwest at approximately 8:00 pm. Minimum relative humidity is forecast to be 30%. Brief thunderstorms are possible over the fire area by mid-afternoon accompanied by lightning and down draft winds. Chance of rain is 50%.

Closures: An area closure remains in place on all National Forest Lands and WA DNR lands affected by the fire. For the most up-to-date trail, road and campground closure information on National Forest and Washington DNR lands, please contact the appropriate land management agency or visit their websites

Washington DNR: www.dnr.wa.gov/managed-lands/forest-and-trust-lands/loomis-and-loup-loup-state-forests

Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest: www.fs.usda.gov/okawen/