Crews tend to small wildfire in Glacier Park

Glacier National Park’s first wildfire of the season was sparked Monday evening along the southern border of the park.

The Goat Lick Fire began about 5:27 p.m. Monday and crews had it contained by Tuesday morning. The fire is located about halfway between the Goat Lick Overlook and Nimrod between U.S. 2 and the Middle Fork of the Flathead River.

It was listed at 0.30 acres Tuesday morning and Glacier National Park crews were still on the scene.

One other fire in Northwest Montana quadrupled in size overnight as a handful of small fires continue to burn in the Kootenai National Forest. The lightning-caused Davis Fire, located along Davis Creek in the far northwest corner of the state, was at 200 acres as of Tuesday morning. Erickson Effective had incident command.

No structures were in danger in the remote mountain area of the Yaak.

The Davis Fire was one of at least 20 fires on the Kootenai Forest that were sparked by a recent lightning storm.

The Porcupine Fire west of Rexford remained at 12 acres, while the Feeder Fire on the Three Rivers Ranger District was at 11 acres.

The Tenmile Fire, located on private land east of Montana 37 and south of Rexford, began late Tuesday morning and was listed at 0.1 acre but has quickly grown to 15 acres. Crews were on the way to the scene.

The Chicago Peak Fire northeast of Noxon began Monday afternoon and was at 0.5 acres.

Hazy skies across Northwest Montana were mostly due to smoke from the intense fire activity in California and Oregon, according to the state Department of Environmental Quality. Air quality was generally rated as moderate across Western Montana.

“The smoky skies are expected to continue through Thursday with an increasing likelihood of new fires here in Montana due to dry thunderstorms and high temperatures,” air quality meteorologist Kristen Martin stated in Tuesdays air update. “Beginning Friday, we should see a decrease in the amount of haze being transported in from California, but fire activity is likely to increase here at home.”

Keep track of air quality at www.TodaysAir.mt.gov.

The fire danger continues to be rated “very high” in the Kootenai Forest.

The Kootenai National Forest is under Stage I fire restrictions, which prohibits campfires except within a developed recreation site, as well as smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site or while in an area cleared of all flammable materials.

Reporter Scott Shindledecker may be reached at 758-4441 or sshindledecker@dailyinterlake.com.