Yesterdays wind did not effect Seepay fire

Summary: Increased winds preceding the passage of a cold front on Tuesday afternoon tested the work firefighters had completed over the last few weeks.  The fire did not make any significant movement except for an increase in the amount of hot-spots smoking up in the interior. The winds actually assisted with a black-lining operation on the southwest flank by moving the black-line farther to the east and robbing the fire of potential fuel.  Forecasted cooler and wetter weather into the weekend should decrease fire activity.  Diane Hutton’s Wildland Fire Management Team will transfer command back to a local Type 3 Team led by Bob McCrea on Friday morning.  A Draft Long-Term Management Plan was presented to Tribal Council Members and Tribal Fire Managers on Tuesday evening.  Incident objectives remain primarily to protect firefighter and public safety and additionally to contain the fire within the Seepay-Magpie Roadless Area.  The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes are removing the Stage 1 Fire Restrictions as of 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, August 23. Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Council Member James “Bing” Matt comments on the Draft Long-Term Strategy Plan at a meeting in Ronan Tuesday night in the picture below.

 Closures: The following roads are closed due to fire activity: Seepay Creek Road from Hwy 200 up is closed. Revais, Magpie, and Vanderberg creek roads are closed from the top over into Seepay. The public can still drive up to top of Revais, Magpie, and Vanderberg. Roads at the top are closed and barricaded. Fire managers realize this may impact local residents huckleberry harvesting but fortunately there is such a bumper crop this year that other areas outside the fire closure are available across the tribal lands.  For the latest fire information/photos http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4077/