Cigarette likely cause of grass fire near Col. Falls

Columbia Falls firefighters were able to extinguish a grass fire Thursday night before it burned down a garage on U.S. 2 about a half mile south of the Blue Moon.

The fire was likely caused by a cigarette thrown out a vehicle window, Columbia Falls Fire Chief Rick Hagen said. He said several bystanders almost got the fire out with bottled water and a fire extinguisher before it spread to taller grass, but an ember escaped in the wind and they weren’t able to get it out once it was in the tall grass.

“That just shows how volatile the fuels are right now,” he said.

Firefighters were on the scene about nine minutes after the call came in just before 5:30 p.m.

They had it under control in 11 minutes, though it did burn through the cable and telephone lines to the home. The fire came within 15 feet of the garage.

This is at least the third Columbia Falls-area grass fire that’s almost burned down structures this year. There was one earlier on U.S. 2 near North Hilltop Road, and one in a neighborhood off Columbia Falls Stage Road.

Hagen reminds people that stage 2 fire restrictions are still in effect. That means no campfires whatsoever and no smoking outside a vehicle or cleared area.

The fire department has responded to several illegal campfire calls this month and the problem has been particularly acute at Blankenship where river users are making campfires when it cools off at night, Hagen noted.

He warned that if a campfire does get out of control, the person who started it is liable for the damages.