Latest News & Updates

Latest News & Updates

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Sawtooth Valley Wildland Fire Collaborative

Sawtooth Valley Wildland Fire Collaborative

Info prepared by Sawtooth Society staff and SVWFC Volunteers. The Sawtooth Society is applying for grant funds to increase wildfire and climate resiliency for Sawtooth Valley. We believe working collaboratively and with respect fosters climate resiliency

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Snow!!!!! ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest's post ... See MoreSee Less

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The national just moved back to PL5. Please stay vigilant to reduce unintentional fire starts.#NationalFireNews: The National #PreparednessLevel has increased to 5 (PL5) as of 7:30 a.m. (MDT) today, October 8. The latest we have been in PL5 in previous years was October 1, 2020. The five preparedness levels range from the lowest (1) to the highest (5).

Significant wildland fire activity remains in multiple Geographic Areas. Hurricane all-hazard response also remains significant and is projected to increase with the addition of another storm (Milton) scheduled to make landfall this week. Predictive Services at the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) indicate that the “extremely anomalous fire environment” will remain in place until at least mid-October for much of the country.

Resource demands continue to increase. NICC is increasingly engaging with Geographic Area Coordination Centers to coordinate and fill orders for all resource types.

More on Preparedness Levels: www.nifc.gov/fire-information

📸 Photo from InciWeb on the #BinghamFire in Oregon.
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The national just moved back to PL5.  Please stay vigilant to reduce unintentional fire starts.

Don't lose your vigilance with ignition sources quite yet. IT IS STILL FIRE SEASON. ... See MoreSee Less

Dont lose your vigilance with ignition sources quite yet.  IT IS STILL FIRE SEASON.Image attachment

Post Incident Analysis is an important part of learning from fires. The Sawtooth Valley Wildland Fire Collaborative is already planning a panel discussion next spring about our near-miss with fires this summer. This comprehensive analysis resource about the Lahaina Fire tragedy is a compelling read.#FireScience also means learning from past incidents. The Lahaina Fire Incident Analysis Report provides an independent review of the tragic fire that destroyed much of Lahaina, HI on August 8–9, 2023.

fsri.org/research-update/lahaina-fire-incident-analysis-report-released-attorney-general-hawaii?m...
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Post Incident Analysis is an important part of learning from fires.  The Sawtooth Valley Wildland Fire Collaborative is already planning a panel discussion next spring about our near-miss with fires this summer. This comprehensive analysis resource about the Lahaina Fire tragedy is a compelling read.

Debris flows and other pics from Grandjean. ... See MoreSee Less

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🔥#WapitiFire update: Yesterday, increased fire activity was apparent on both the Wapiti and the Frog Fires, producing smoke in several interior areas, but not threatening containment lines. Increased smoke also showed an uptick in fire activity in the Sawtooth Wilderness, the southeast corner of the Wapiti Fire, where the fire is burning through isolated timber stringers in very rugged and inaccessible terrain.

While firefighters have completed most suppression and repair activities, today crews will be working in several areas on both the Wapiti and the Frog Fires. Engine and hand crews will patrol containment lines and use helicopters to monitor internal fire activity. A Wildland Fire module will work on the Frog Fire, maintaining containment lines in the northeast part of the fire, and searching for the heat signature found by an infrared flight in the Red Ridge area. On the Wapiti Fire, a task force will be in the Grandjean area to remove hazardous trees and debris, restore access to the Sourdough area, and monitor the area. Firefighters will continue to remove fire-weakened hazard trees, or “snags” and clearing debris in the fire area on several closed Forest Service roads including Stanley Lake road and along Hwy 21.

📃🗺 Read today's full update and find additional maps and photos ➡️ inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/idbof-wapiti-fire

U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest
U.S. Forest Service - Boise National Forest
U.S. Forest Service - Salmon-Challis National Forest
Boise County Sheriff's Office
Custer County Sheriff-Idaho
Idaho Transportation Department
Idaho Department of Lands
US National Weather Service Pocatello Idaho
Sawtooth Valley Wildland Fire Collaborative
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Need firewood?
Firewood is available in Iron Creek 🪵. The area is open to firewood gatherer's with a valid U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest permit AND an exemption letter. For questions on firewood collection on the Sawtooth National Forest, please contact the Stanley Ranger Station at 208.774.3000.
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Need firewood? 
Firewood is available in Iron Creek 🪵. The area is open to firewood gatherers with a valid U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest permit AND an exemption letter. For questions on firewood collection on the Sawtooth National Forest, please contact the Stanley Ranger Station at 208.774.3000.Image attachmentImage attachment

Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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The BAER team arrived in Stanley on Sept. 26 and immediately began a field assessment of critical values and the subsequent threats due to the #WapitiFire. These dots represent ground or aerial observations made by team members. They've hiked, driven, flown, crawled, dirt biked, and observed burned areas all over this area! ... See MoreSee Less

#NationalFireNews: The National #PreparednessLevel has increased to a 4 (PL4) as of 7:30 a.m. (MDT) today, October 4, 2024.

Significant wildland fire activity is again increasing in multiple Geographic Areas. Hurricane Helene all hazard-incident response is also significant and will increase in the coming days and weeks. Predictive Services indicates an "extremely anomalous fire environment through at least mid-October" for much of the country.

The potential for significant incidents to emerge in multiple Geographic Areas indicates that resource demands will continue or increase. The National Interagency Coordination Center is increasingly engaging with Geographic Area Coordination Centers to coordinate and fill orders for all resource types.

More on preparedness levels: www.nifc.gov/fire-information

📸 Photo from InciWeb of the #LineFire in California.
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Photos from U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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FIREWISE your structures. It is not a matter of if more local wildfires will happen, but WHEN they will happen. Here's a fascinating big-picture article about how important it is to protect structures and let forests burn. "Continued reliance on fire exclusion, suppression, and avoidance of beneficial burning while underinvesting in communities will perpetuate the sequence of events leading to wildfire disasters." headwaterseconomics.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024HE-Redefining_Urban_Western_Fires_FinalMay... ... See MoreSee Less

FIREWISE your structures. It is not a matter of if more local wildfires will happen, but WHEN they will happen.  Heres a fascinating big-picture article about how important it is to protect structures and let forests burn. Continued reliance on fire exclusion, suppression, and avoidance of beneficial burning while underinvesting in communities will perpetuate the sequence of events leading to wildfire disasters. https://headwaterseconomics.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024HE-Redefining_Urban_Western_Fires_FinalMay2024.pdfImage attachmentImage attachment

Do you know the difference between a bear and a BAER? Check out these photos of the Burned Area Emergency Recovery (BAER) team working on the Wapiti Fire.

Wapiti Fire Information 2024
U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest
Sawtooth Society
Stanley, Idaho
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Do you know the difference between a bear and a BAER?  Check out these photos of the Burned Area Emergency Recovery (BAER) team working on the Wapiti Fire.

Wapiti Fire Information 2024
U.S. Forest Service-Sawtooth National Forest
Sawtooth Society
Stanley, IdahoImage attachmentImage attachment+4Image attachment

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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Photos from Wapiti Fire Information 2024's post ... See MoreSee Less

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The Burned Area Emergency Recovery Team (BAER) assessing post-fire impacts for urgent recovery needs. See each photo for a description of their work. ... See MoreSee Less

The Burned Area Emergency Recovery Team (BAER) assessing post-fire impacts for urgent recovery needs. See each photo for a description of their work.Image attachmentImage attachment+6Image attachment
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I’d like to Volunteer

Thank you for your interest in volunteering!

The SVWFC is the only collaborative in our region working collectively to reduce wildland fire risks in the Sawtooth Valley. Mitigating wildfire hazards in the Sawtooth Valley protects Blaine and Custer Counties from catastrophic fires due to prevailing winds that can funnel fire into the Big Wood and Salmon River drainages. The collaborative structure of SVWFC was not mandated by any law, regulation, or policy, but rather by community-driven need. The tremendous positive impacts of fire collaboratives in other regions of Idaho and the West motivate local stakeholders to work together. The SVWFC aims to better protect local communities from ongoing hazards of wildfires as effectively and efficiently as possible.

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In central Idaho, research shows that hot, dry weather conditions and wildfire patterns will continue to put people and structures at risk and harm our natural ecosystems. On average, 45 fires burn each fire season in the Sawtooth National Forest – half caused by lighting, and half caused by humans. While regular fire is an important and regenerative part of the ecosystem, since the 1980s, the fire season – when the vegetation is dry enough to sustain a fire – has lengthened considerably according to Dr. John Abatzoglou, a scientist who studies climate science, wildfire, and its impact on the American West.

“Over the past 50 years, fires have become much larger, and the amount of landscape being burned is increasing dramatically,” Abatzoglou said. Large, severe fires are highly likely to intensify in Idaho and result in longer wildfire seasons, and increased wildfire frequency, intensity, and total area burned.