Rainfall won't reduce fires

LAKE COUNTY - Record-setting rainfall in June has grass and brush around the area looking green into July.

But area fire officials say not to be deceived: We could still be in for an intense fire season.

"Before we had all this rain, it wasn't looking good," Polson Fire Chief John Fairchild said. "Now we're at about average."

Average is good for the area after less-than-average snowfall during the winter. The reduced snowpack threatened to leave the valley drier than normal but the heavy rainfall in May and June has refilled area waterways to the brim. Isolated areas have even experienced flooding in the last few weeks.

"The rain is really good for the farmers," Fairchild said. "When it pours in sheets, most just runs off, but a nice sprinkling of rain, that's good. It soaks right down and takes longer to dry out."

However, the abundance of water may be deceiving, Fairchild warned. While the water has helped crops grow, it's had the same effect on undergrowth that has grown higher than it traditionally does. Once that growth cures, as it surely will in a Montana summer, Fairchild said the resulting fires could be more intense and severe than in years past.

"The thing that scares me is the growth rate of some of the grasses," he said. "They could be four or five feet. Once that dries out by July or August, boy, it's going to be trouble."

Fairchild said three-foot grasses could produce 12 to 14-foot flame lengths. This recipe for fire season may produce fewer fires but bigger overall losses, Fairchild said.

"Our area is very unpredictable," he said. "The rain pushed the fires back so we're definitely back a few weeks."

Most fires are started by lighting strikes, Fairchild said, mainly from thunderstorms in July and August or microbursts of weather activity. In July, Fairchild said, the department averages 60 or 70 calls. And while June is traditionally the wettest month, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Fire Management Officer Jim Steele said the weather should return to normal as the summer continues.

"We do expect fire activity to increase in July," Jim Steele, CSKT Fire Management Officer, said. "August will probably be the biggest part of the fire season."

Last year, most agree the season was relatively light. Fairchild said the Polson department only had 46 calls in July last year, way below normal. But with large amounts of short green growth, Steele said grass fires could be an issue early on.

"If the weather continues to be dry, expect fires to transition into the forest," he said.

Because fire season has yet to begin, both Fairchild and Steele encourage homeowners to prepare their homes for a dry summer. Fairchild said pruning trees and bushes and moving burnable items at least 30 feet away from your home could save it from fire. He said having a plan and an idea of how to get away from a burning residence could be the difference between life and death for fire victims.

"The more residents do, the better are our chances of helping them," Fairchild said. "Take the time to move stuff away from your homes so you have ‘defendable space'."

As for predicting what this season actually holds for the area, Steele said it's nearly impossible to know.

"It's anybody's guess," he said. "I can tell you better next November."