July 3, 2012
Contact: Henry Poole, Delaware Forest Service Fire Program Administrator, 302-698-4548
Twenty wildland firefighters from Delaware who battled fires in Colorado for the past week are now assigned to the massive Arapaho Fire located 28 miles northwest of Wheatland, Wyoming.
The large blaze is considered “dangerous” by fire officials on the scene and is currently estimated at almost 88,000 acres in size with only 10 perecent containment. Officials say the fire has the potential for rapid growth due to the hot and dry weather conditions in the region. Delaware’s crew is conducting burnout operations in Division Y of the massive blaze.
Arapaho Fire Public Information Office – 307-298-0556
The Arapaho Fire is currently 87,984 acres as of an infrared flight Monday night. Some structures have been destroyed but the area is still too dangerous to allow a detailed assessment. Structure protection groups remain in place 24 hours a day. Aviation resources continue to assist on the fire as the weather and winds allow.
Hot and dry weather conditions will continue today(07/03/2012) creating the potential for large fire growth.
There will be a public meeting on July 3rd at 6:30pm at the Douglas Middle School in Douglas.
Incident Type – Wildfire
Cause – Under Investigation
Date of Origin – Wednesday June 27th, 2012 approx. 10:35 PM
Location – 28 miles NW of Wheatland, WY
Incident Commander – Mike Morcom
Total Personnel – 575
Size – 87,984 acres
Percent Contained – 10%
Fire Behavior – Fire exhibited high spread rates with group torching and medium range spotting
Significant Events – Evacuations remain in effect. An assessment of lost structures is beginning as fire conditions allow. Crews continue to be successful with burn out operations in areas where the fire has moved into lighter fuels on the eastern and southern perimeters. Crews continue with structure protection where needed. Numerous road closures remain in effect.
Planned Actions – Continue structure protection and evacuations as necessary. Continue to construct indirect line and secondary lines due to extreme fire behavior. Hold and mop up established lines
Growth Potential – Extreme
Terrain Difficulty – Extreme
Remarks – Transfer of command to Mike Morcom’s Type 1 PNW2 team took place on 7/1/2012 at 2000. Incident costs(Block 19) and Committed Resources(Block 43) have not been updated from yesterday. Structures lost(Block 24) is an estimate at this time.
Wind Conditions 11 mph NW
Temperature 79 degrees
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