The rapid spread that is the Lost Horse Creek Fire has been a catalyst for an evacuation warning for a area to the north Fairbanks.
In an update online published early on Friday, early Friday morning, Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection declared that the blaze is currently at 1,900 acres and ground crews on the scene to fight the blaze. The total number of firefighters are battling the fire.
Fairbanks North Star Borough spokesperson Lanien Livingston has confirmed that the level 3 “GO” evacuation notice, released late Wednesday evening, covers a part of Haystack subdivision, which is located off Elliot Highway. Elliot Highway.
“For that upper Haystack Drive area, residents were told to evacuate, and leave the area as soon as possible,” Livingston said. “It’s the best I can tell you is that there’s not a great deal of houses in the area.”
Livingston states that areas larger towards the south and north were put in Level 2 or “SET” status.
“The lower portion in the Haystack Drive area and the most northeastern portion of the area, known as known as the Poker Flat area, those people living in these areas need to be prepared to move in a flash,” she said.
Notices of evacuation were sent out Wednesday night due the increase of activity at the Lost Horse Creek Fire, to the east from the Elliot Highway near Mile 18 which is about three miles to the north of Haystack. The fire was one of many that were sparked by lightning earlier in the week. Forestry and Fire Protection spokesperson Sam Harrel says it plotted within a restricted-modified area of protection.
“It exhibited no active fire, no active fire growth,” Harrel said. “It was just a tiny “duffer,” as we call them. It was nothing more than a bit of smoke.”
Harrel says the situation changed on Tuesday, with returning warm and dry weather. The state started to attack on the Lost Horse Creek Fire with drops of water and retardant. However, despite all the media attention, Harrel says it’s continued to rage through the dense forest including vast areas of extremely easily flammable black spruce. It grew dramatically by the time Wednesday night approaches.
“Air attack was speculating that it was between two and 2,500 acres” he added.
Harrel says that crews are on the move to tackle on the blaze and also to The Haystack subdivision to look at properties to ensure structure protection. He says Alaska’s Type II emergency management group will take charge for Lost Horse Creek and several smaller wildfires that are burning in the region in the northern part of the town. Harrel states that several regions of the borough are covered by the level 1 “READY” evacuation warnings.
“We all must know the steps we should do in the event that an evacuation is required for our region,” Harrel said. “If we have animals that are large and animals, we should be prepared on how to handle those. If you have a large kennel full of sled dogs, we must have a plan of what you should do. If you’re a caretaker or if you have elderly people who aren’t mobile and require a bit more time to travel places…these are the issues you must be focusing on in a ready state.”
The borough is trying to ramp up evacuation services and Livingston states that emergency operations do not have a shelter for evacuation available.
“That aspect is being negotiated,” Livingston said. “We are in contact to the regional Red Cross, and I am hoping to get a more information on that in the near future.”
Livingston says that the Borough has the capacity to help evacuated animals.
“We normally have a livestock or pet evacuation area for emergencies in the Fairgrounds at Tanana Valley but the fair is taking place in the present moment,” she said. “The great news is that we’ll be able to take in and help some pets at the household shelter for animals.”
The risk of more evacuations is an actual threat. There are currently 140 active wildfires throughout the state, with the majority occurring located in the Interior and the fire-friendly conditions are expected to increase. National Weather Service forecaster Dustin Salpzman predicts temperatures in the 80s and possibly even 90’s are anticipated this weekend, as well as southwesterly airflow and cold weather conditions.
“And when you have this chinook flow, we also experience dry atmosphere, and this is beneficial for spreading fires that are burning,” Salpzman said. “So it’s going to be another of the pattern of fires that those living in the Interior are well-versed in.”
A announcement issued by the Weather Service says the chinook winds will begin to develop on Friday in that region of the Alaska Range and also push into the Tanana Valley. It states that the dry, hot conditions are expected to continue until Monday, when a gradual cooling process starts.
