Wildfires Burning in Bridger Teton Forest

A series of fires are burning in Western Wyoming.

The two-acre Box Creek Fire is located on the Bridger Teton National Forest in the Blackrock Ranger District. This new lightning caused fire is burning within the Teton Wilderness, east of Gravel Ridge within the Box Creek drainage.  The fire, which is in relatively dense timber with moderate ground fuels, is being allowed to play its natural role in the Teton Wilderness.

The Slide Fire was discovered on Friday, July 19, and is currently burning on the Bridger-Teton National Forest on the Big Piney Ranger District. The fire is located in a remote area near Bondurant in the North Fork Fisherman Creek area. It is burning in heavy dead and down timber. The cause of the fire is a lightning strike from a thunderstorm several days ago. Substantial rain fell in the area during the storm but with the hot, dry, and windy conditions this week, the fire activity picked up.

And another fire was discovered on the Kemmerer Ranger District, and has been named the Middle Fork Fire. Firefighters expected containment to happen in the Commissary Ridge area yesterday.

Fire prevention specialists say these fires are a reminder that the forest is drying out, and people recreating in the wildlands need to take extra precautions to completely extinguish campfires.