Blaine County goes into Stage 1 Fire Restrictions

by Havre Daily News staff

With drying conditions continuing to hit the state, Blaine and Golden Valley counties have jointed other Montana counties already under Stage 1 Fire Restricions including Chouteau and Hill Counties.

Chouteau County also has implemented a local burn ban.

“With Labor Day weekend on the horizon, north-central Montana continues to see a warming and drying trend,” a press release from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Lewistown said. “Blaine and Golden Valley counties will begin Stage 1 fire restrictions on Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, starting at 12:01 a.m. “These restrictions apply to all state, private, Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation lands within these counties.”

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks also issued a release saying FWP sites in Blaine County would go under Stage 1 restrictions.

“In response to dry, warm weather that could increase the danger of human-caused wildfires, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks fishing access sites and wildlife management areas will be under Stage 1 Fire Restrictions in Blaine County beginning at 12:01 a.m. Friday morning, Sept. 4,” the release said. “The restrictions will be in effect until further notice. This follows Stage 1 restrictions already in place in Valley, Hill and Roosevelt counties.”

The BLM release said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service managed lands within Blaine County has implement fire restrictions on Black Coulee Refuge.

Additionally, representatives from Fort Belknap Indian Reservation elected to enter Stage 1 fire restrictions for all tribal lands within Blaine County.

Stage 1 fire restrictions apply to campfires and smoking. Under Stage 1 restrictions, the following acts are prohibited:

• Building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire or campfire except within a developed recreation site, fire ring or improved site.

• Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials. 

Approved campsites for the Bureau of Land Management in Blaine County are Gist Bottom and Stafford Ferry.

Exemptions to the above Stage 1 prohibitions include the following:

• Persons with a written permit that specifically authorizes the otherwise prohibited act.

• Persons using a device solely fueled by liquid petroleum or LPG fuels that can be turned on and off. Such devices can only be used in an area that is barren or cleared of all overhead and surrounding flammable materials within three feet of the device.

• Persons conducting activities in those designated areas where the activity is specifically authorized by written posted notice.

• Any federal, state or local officer or member of an organized rescue or firefighting force in the performance of an official duty.

• All land within a city boundary is exempted.

• Other exemptions unique to each agency/tribe/jurisdiction.

Fireworks are prohibited on all state and federal lands. Exploding targets available for sale to recreational shooters are considered a pyrotechnic product and are prohibited on state and federally managed lands year-round. 

Any person who causes a wildfire intentionally or through negligence will be held accountable for damage and suppression costs.

For more information on fire restrictions, people can visit the fire restrictions website at http://www.firerestrictions.us, or contact Shannon Bonney, Lewistown Area restrictions coordinator, at 406-538-1942, the release said.

The FWP release said it followed the lead of officials in these counties that have adopted Stage 1 Fire Restrictions. These restrictions ban campfires except where specifically exempted. Stage 1 Fire Restrictions also prohibit smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, and in areas at least three feet in diameter that are cleared of all flammable materials. People still may cook on a LP gas or propane stove that can be turned on and off.

Per FWP policy, no fires will be allowed, even in steel grates, at any fishing access site — FAS — or wildlife management area WMA in the counties named. Campfires, normally allowed, are prohibited at the following sites:

• Glasgow Base Pond FAS, Valley County

• Fort Peck Dredge Cut Pond (Trout Pond) FAS, Valley County

• Bear Paw FAS, Hill County

• Bailey Reservoir FAS, Hill County

• Fresno Tail water FAS, Hill County

Open fires are already prohibited year-round at the following sites:

• Faber Reservoir FAS, Blaine County

-Duck Creek and School Trust FASs, Valley County

• Hinsdale and Vandalia WMAs, Valley County

• Lost River and Rookery WMAs, Hill County

• Lewis and Clark FAS (Bridge Park), Roosevelt County.

For updates on restrictions and closures around the state, go to fwp.mt.gov, and under the “news” tab, click on “drought and fire.”