Montana governor declares fire emergency

HELENA (AP) — Gov. Steve Bullock has declared a fire emergency in Montana as better weather conditions Sunday aided firefighting efforts and prevented new major fire starts.

The emergency declaration allows Bullock to mobilize state resources and the Montana National Guard to fight the fires.

Fires are burning in Glacier National Park and the Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Bitterroot, Helena, Kootenai and Flathead national forests and on the Flathead Indian Reservation.

The state's biggest fire has burned nearly 21 square miles in Glacier. There is no containment on the fire, but officials noted cooler temperatures, higher humidity and lighter winds on Sunday.

Elsewhere in Montana, state and local firefighters made progress in attacking a wildfire that quickly consumed 6,000 acres of mostly open range in Broadwater and Gallatin counties north of Three Forks on Friday.