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[logo]. Great Basin Interagency Incident Management Team

Date & Time
Friday
9/12/03
8am

Fact Sheet 57

Wedge Canyon Fire

Contact:
Fire Information: 406-892-0946
406-329-3511

What: Lightning Caused Wildfire

Started: July 18, 2003 1:25 PM

General Location: About 42 miles north of Columbia Falls, Montana, and 6 miles south of the Canadian border.

Current Size: Approx. 53,315 acres.

Injuries: 26 to date / 1 today.

Containment: 87%

Estimated Containment Date: 9-15-03 18:00

Estimated Control: Unknown

Saleen Team Transitions With Sandman Team

September 12, 2003 - The Saleen Team will transition to the Sandman Team, another type-2 team, on Saturday and many will return home to Idaho. The Sandman team will manage the Wedge fire, and several of the other fires in the area including the Robert fire. Crews will complete the rehabilitation operations and mop up any remaining hot spots.

Thursday crews braced themselves as 20-30 mph winds gusted through the fire area bringing more showers and cooler temperatures. "All in all it was a good day out there," said Walt Grows, Deputy of Logistics. "We brought in between 17-19 miles of hose off of the line today and just in time as the snow line is coming down."

Residents in the Wedge fire area are encouraged to call the two information numbers listed above if they have further questions or considerations with the fires. Residents in the Teepee Lake, Trail Creek, North Fork Road and Bowman Lake areas will be kept informed with newsletters, faxes and e-mail through the Sandman team.

The Flathead National Forest will advise residents with a news release when the road and area closures are lifted as hazard trees and rehabilitation operations are completed. The North Fork Road remains closed one half mile north of Moose Creek.

Since the start of the Wedge fire on July 18, there have been 627 pieces of equipment, 41 different aircraft, 96 crews, 879 overhead and 6012 personnel used on the fire.

Wolf Gun Fire will continue to be monitored as needed dependent upon weather conditions and fire behavior. Acres by ownership on the Wedge Fire are: State - 1,093, Glacier National Park - 30,012, Flathead National Forest - 20,628, and Private ownership - 1,241.

The safety of fire fighting personnel and public is of the highest priority.

Jurisdiction: Flathead National Forest, Glacier National Park and Flathead County.

Other Cooperating Agencies: Montana DNRC, BIA and BLM.

Resources on the fire: 415 total personnel / 3 helicopters / 11 crews / 9 engines.

Roads: North Fork Road is open from Big Creek to Sonderson Meadow.

Remarks: To date: 7 houses/cabins, 29 outbuildings were lost and 1 house/cabin damaged. (July 26 and July 31, 2003.)

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Glacier National Park
P.O. Box 128
West Glacier, MT 59936
(406)888-7800
(406)888-7808 - FAX
(406)888-7806 - TDD

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Flathead National Forest
1935 3rd Avenue, East
Kalispell, MT 59901
(406)758-5200
(406)758-5363 - FAX)
(406)758-5367 - TDD)

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