HELENA – Both Baxendale Volunteer Fire Department and Helena U.S. Forest Service firefighters were dispatched to Rimini Road to put out an unattended campfire.
The unattended campfire was reported at around 3 p.m. Wednesday, August 1 at a campsite near the Moose Creek campground.
Two engines responded to the incident, one from Baxendale Fire and the other from the U.S. Forest Service.
Helena U.S .Forest Service Engine Foreman Owen Johnson said the fire smoldered though the night before being discovered the next day.
The fire never escaped its ring but did have the potential of growing into something larger.
“Things are getting hotter, things are getting dryer and as summer progresses especially these next couple days and weeks things are going to really dry out,” said Johnson
Johnson said he hopes people are able to get out and enjoy the forest, but asks people to be responsible when extinguishing their campfires.
If any heat can be felt in the fire pit, that means more work needs to be done to put it out completely.
Also on August 1, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s office says crews contained a small fire that broke out on Sheep Mountain northwest of Clancy, MT.
People are asked to avoid the area and say smoke will be visible from the fire this evening.
