NEWS RELEASE
Payette National Forest
USDA Forest Service
Krassel Ranger District
McCall, Idaho
Quartz Creek Fire
www.fs.fed.us/r6/colville/WIMT
Monday, July 24, 2006–1600 Hours
Yellowpine, Idaho
Incident Information: Incident Command Post (208) 633 – 2204
During this fire suppression effort, no resource is more important than human lives. Firefighter, aviation and public
safety is our highest priority. All firefighting strategies are being coordinated with the utmost consideration of the well
being of the people involved. Firefighters are extensively trained in safety procedures and will take no risks that may
jeopardize their own safety or the safety of others. The locations and behaviors of each fire are being monitored and
scrutinized for effective and expedient suppression while ensuring public safety and protecting private property.
Firefighters turn the corner on western flank of Quartz Creek Fire
Yellowpine, Idaho. – After successfully building fire line along the entire length of the western flank of
the Quartz Creek Fire, Type III firefighting crews have turned the corner, and are now working downhill along the
northern and southern flanks, suppressing hot spots as they go.
For six days the fire has been creeping through ground fuels, burning jackpots of debris and torching
crowns in the Vein Creek drainage. An infrared flight last night located a dozen spots across and on the opposite
slope of the creek. Two Type I crews worked to extinguish those spots today and are laying hoses from the creek
toward the eastern head of the fire in order to cool it down and reduce the potential for spotting. By 6 p.m tonight,
water was being used to cool down the fire along most of the eastern perimeter.
According to Marsh Haskins, incident commander for the Washington Incident Management Team in
control of the fire, the eastern front of the fire had posed problems for the firefighters. “The edge of the fire is very
irregular and is burning along fingers toward the creek,” Haskins said. “Inside those fingers is a lot of heavy,
unburned fuel,” he said.
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Quartz Creek Fire
1800 Hours
July 24, 2006
The crews have been spiked out on the fire line for the past two days in order to take advantage of the low
temperatures and higher humidity of the cool morning. The Type I hot shot crews will spike out tonight near the
confluence of Quartz and Vein Creek.
Quartz Creek Fire has been burning approximately four miles north of Yellowpine, Idaho since
last Wednesday. Haskins and his team assumed control of the fire and initial attack responsibilities for
the area on Saturday.
Haskin said that all of the fire efforts have been very effective in slowing the fire’s growth and
that several aircraft may be demobilized later this week. “The hot shots have been working along the
eastern perimeter with pump and hose support, and have reached far enough north to hear the shovels of
the crews above them,” Haskins said. “I believe that, if the weather remains cooperative, we should be
able to secure the perimeter by Friday or Saturday,” he said.
The fire was started by lightning and has burned through dense lodgepole pine and sub-alpine fir.
It has been fought using direct attack by ground crews and retardant and water drops.
No primary residences are threatened or have been destroyed by the fire. A structural protection
plan is now in place for the cabins and homes that might have been threatened with strong winds or drier
conditions.
A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is still in effect for non-incident aircraft for a five-mile radius
around Big Creek Point. Haskins said he is working with local airport managers to help the flying public
understand the risks associated with heavy air traffic.
Incident Commander Haskins said that firefighter safety continues to be his primary emphasis for
the incident. “Because firefighters have adhered to safety precautions, regulations and guidelines, there
have been no reported injuries during this incident,” he said.
END
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Quartz Creek Fire
1800 Hours
July 24, 2006
Incident information – including photographs, maps, news releases, incident objectives and statistics – can be
accessed at the Washington Incident Management Team web site at: www.fs.fed.us/r6/colville/wimt.
Quartz Creek Fire
Size: 83 Acres
Number of Fires: 1
Started: 7 – 19 – 2006
Containment: 40%
Location: Started 4 miles north of Yellow Pine, Idaho; burning in mixed stands of lodgepole and subalpine fir
Threats: heavy, dry fuels; steep, rocky terrain; lightning
Resources: Total personnel: 285; 7 20-person crews; 4 helicopters; 106 miscellaneous overhead
Estimated Final Incident Cost: $1,367,000
Closures: None
END