Lake County, MT

The night the Elmo Fire reached Chief Cliff Lane was the closest Lake County Sheriff Don Bell said he’s ever gotten to initiating an emergency evacuation. He and a deputy went door to door along the street where houses are built amid rugged terrain in an elevated area between the communities of Elmo and Dayton.

MISSOULA, Mont. — The Elmo 2 Fire burning in Lake County saw minimal growth on Monday, and was measured at 21,349 acres in an overnight infrared flight. That's an increase of four acres since Monday. The daily flight log noted the following: "Very little growth occurred with a total...

The Elmo wildfire in Lake County, Montana grew slightly on Sunday from 21,327 acres to 21,345 acres. The containment percentage also grew from 30% to 55%. Cooler temperatures and lower winds over the weekend aided in containment efforts, as fire weather was critical during the week. The Elmo Fire was human-caused and began on July 29. Additionally, NASA has recently done a study to predict critical details about wildfires, and it could help prevent them in the future.

Incident is 30% contained. UPDATE ON EVACUATIONS AND CLOSURES - 8.7.2022 9:30 AM8.7.2022 10:00 AM Update on Evacuations and ClosuresUpdates from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office on evacuations and closures in effect at 12:00 PM on Sunday, August 7, 2022:Evacuation orders have been lifted for residents along Lake Mary Ronan Road (Hwy 352) west of Dayton Creek Road. This area will remain under pre-evacuation warning and open to residents and guests only.Camp Tuffit/West Shore Road remains under evacuation order and is closed to all traffic.Residents of Chief Cliff Lane, Black Lake Road, Big Meadows Road, and Dayton Creek Road remain under pre-evacuation warning and open to residents only.Speed limits will be reduced to 35 mph on Lake Mary Ronan Road (Hwy 352).The Proctor dump will be open to Lake County residents with normal operating hours.Closures remain in effect for the Boat Ramp at the Elmo Fishing Access site and Lake Mary Ronan State Park. 

The Monday morning update shows the Elmo Fire is now 55% contained with little growth seen on the blaze over the weekend.

MISSOULA, Mont. — The Elmo 2 Fire burning in Lake County now measures 21,345 acres, according to overnight infrared mapping. That's an increase of 18 acres from Sunday. The daily flight log noted the following: "Very little growth occurred with a total of 18 acres all centered around the area on the southeast edge of Big Meadows. There was only one area of intense heat that was associated with the growth area. Large areas of scattered heat still remain from the push up toward Lake Mary Ronan. Smaller scattered heat and isolated heat occur except along the southern perimeter where no heat has been detected for a few days."

Concerned residents took to the streets for a second protest in Lakeside over the weekend to voice their opposition to a proposed alpine coaster development just down the road. Developers Torsten and Jessica Wedel are in the process of building the coaster, which is an amusement ride that sends bobsled-like carts down a track built into a hillside, after a failed attempt to erect one in Lake County last year. The couple’s efforts to build the coaster on a piece of property by mile marker 99 on U.S. 93 just north of Lakeside, unveiled earlier this year, have drawn strident opposition...

Concerned residents took to the streets for a second protest in Lakeside over the weekend to voice their opposition to a proposed alpine coaster development just down the road. Developers Torsten and Jessica Wedel are in the process of building the coaster, which is an amusement ride that sends bobsled-like carts down a track built into a hillside, after a failed attempt to erect one in Lake County last year. The couple’s efforts to build the coaster on a piece of property by mile marker 99 on U.S. 93 just north of Lakeside, unveiled earlier this year, have drawn strident opposition...

MISSOULA, Mont. — Growth on the Elmo 2 Fire burning in Lake County grew a little on Sunday, as the fire reached 21,327 acres, infrared flight data shows. This was an increase of 129 acres compared to its previous size at 21,198 acres on Saturday. The Lake County Sheriff's...

ELMO – As containment of the Elmo 2 wildfire increased to 61% on Tuesday morning, the Lake County Sheriff's Office downgraded evacuation orders to pre-evacuation warnings for residents along Lake Mary Ronan Road west of Dayton Creek Road, Chief Cliff Lane, Black Lake Road and Big Meadows Road. Closures remain in effect for the boat ramp at the Elmo Fishing Access site and Lake Mary Ronan State Park, while Camp Tuffit/West Shore Road remains under evacuation order and is closed to all traffic. During a public fire update meeting held Monday night at the Elmo Pow Wow Grounds, Northern Rockies Incident...