Public fire meeting set in Salmon Tuesday

The Salmon-Challis National Forest will host a public meeting tonight to discuss fire fighting efforts around the Salmon area. It is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Salmon Valley Business and Innovation Center at 803 Monroe Street.

The Bobcat Fire is now visible from Highway 93 just south of North Fork, Idaho. It is estimated at 315 acres and continues to burn in grass and light to heavy timber. It is located in the vicinity of Napoleon Gulch about 15 miles north of Salmon. It is burning in steep, inaccessible terrain. It is believed to have been started by lightning.

Fire managers are developing strategies to manage the high priority fire. They are also assessing structures in the vicinity of the fire area.

Nationally, the forest service is at its highest fire planning level, which means there are limited fire fighting resources available. The Salmon-Challis Forest has received some resources and has used fire crews and helicopter bucket drops to suppress the fire.

The public is being encouraged to cooperate with firefighters as they evaluate homes and structures near and around the Bobcat Fire area.

Other fires:

Since August 10, there have been 20 new fires on the Salmon-Challis National Forest.

The Harbor, Alpine, and Roaring fires in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness are now being managed as part of the Middle Fork Complex. A total of five fires in that complex are being allowed to play their natural ecological roles in the wilderness.

Of the remainder, the Beartrap Fire in Lick Creek is one half acre in size. It was contained on Sunday.

The Elkhorn Fire is estimated at 50 acres and is 90 percent contained. It is west of Clear Creek and north of Elkhorn Creek.

In the Salmon-Cobalt Ranger District, the 1/10th acre Arnett Fire near Arnett Creek is officially out.