UPDATED 7 P.M.: Evacuations in Idaho County; fire growth near Riggins forces road closure, strands rafters

UPDATED 7 P.M.: The Idaho County Sheriff’s Office issued a Stage 2 evacuation notice for the Elk City and Newsome areas because of the potential for rapid spread of the Baldy and Wash fires that are expected to be driven by high winds.

UPDATED 3:50 P.M.: Parts of the Red River area south of Elk City have been placed under a Stage 2 evacuation notice.

The evacuation area includes Red River Hot Springs at the end of Road 234 to its junction with Red River Road 222 and everything along the Road 222 north to Gold Point, just north of the junction with Road 1800. Road 222 is open.

UPDATED 2:45 P.M.: Fires in remote parts of Idaho County on the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest have led to heightened evacuation alerts this afternoon.

Residents of the Cook Ranch and the Mallard Creek Ranch on the breaks of the Salmon River near Dixie are now under a Stage 3 evacuation, and Powell near the Idaho/Montana state line along U.S. Highway 12 has moved to Stage 2.

Under Stage 3, residents are advised to leave immediately and under Stage 2 they are advised to be prepared to leave at a moment's notice.

Powell is threatened by the 3,225-acre Jay Point Fire. Cook Ranch and Mallard Creek Ranch are threatened by the 555-acre Noble Fire.

ORIGINAL STORY: Rapid growth of the Tepee Springs fire south and east of Riggins late Thursday prompted the closure of French Creek Road and temporarily stranded some rafters.

Fire managers have established a pilot car for a closed section of the Salmon River Road east of Riggins so rafters coming off of wilderness float trips can get out of the river corridor.

However, the car will operate based on fire behavior and not on a set schedule, said Greg Lesch of the Payette National Forest at McCall. French Creek Road was closed late Thursday when the fire made a big push, gobbling up 15,000 acres, including a 60-acre spot fire in the French Creek drainage. The fire advanced down Partridge Creek, reached the Salmon River and a small spot fire jumped to the other side.

The fire has now burned more than 40,000 acres and Lesch said more rapid growth is expected today.

“Today and tomorrow we are expecting another big run,” he said. “The next day or two, the fire is going to be moving around quite a bit.”

He said helicopters were able to knock down the spot that jumped to the north side of the river Thursday. Because of the extreme fire behavior, Lesch said a group of about 20 rafters had to spend the night at Vinegar Creek but were able to leave this morning.

He said provisions like food and water are being positioned at Vinegar Creek in the event that more rafters become temporarily trapped by the road closures.

The main Salmon River was closed to new launches at Corn Creek downstream of Riggins but there are about 300 rafters between Corn Creek and Vinegar Creek, said Amy Baumer, spokeswoman for the Salmon-Challis National Forest.

River rangers are warning rafters of the situation and urging them to quickly progress downriver. Baumer didn’t know how long the river would be closed.

“People who manage the river at the North Fork Ranger District are watching the situation on a daily basis and will be reassessing that opening it when they feel it’s safe to do so,” she said.

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