Hill County increasing fire restrictions, moving to Stage 1

Despite relatively light fire activity in the state this past week, Hill and Roosevelt counties have decided to move into Stage 1 fire restrictions based on their conditions.

The counties announced the coming changes during a regional fire call this morning.

Hill County is in a burn ban at the moment.

Under the Stage 1 restrictions, which will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Friday, building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire or campfire and 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 are prohibited.

Exemptions include when a person with a written permit or conducting activities in those designated areas where the activity is specifically authorized by written posted notice.

People using a device solely fueled by liquid petroleum or LPG fuels that can be turned on and off, provided it is used in an area that is barren or cleared of all overhead and surrounding flammable materials within 3 feet of the device, are also exempt.

All land within a city boundary is also exempted.

Chouteau, Petroleum, Phillips and Valley counties along with numerous state agencies are already in Stage 1 and Wheatland County is Stage 2.

During the fire call this morning, Hill County Disaster and Emergency Aid Services Coordinator Amanda Frickle said the county saw three fires last week, two caused by machinery, and one appears to be the result of a downed power line or something of that nature.

Frickle said about seven acres of land were burned.

Blaine County saw one fire in the Harlem area which burned less than an acre.

During the call, a representative from the National Weather Service Office in Great Falls said scattered showers occurred this morning in north-eastern Montana along with some lightning.

He said some areas might see a 10th of an inch of precipitation, but most will probably only see a few hundredths, and the spread isn’t wide enough to make much of a difference in fire conditions.

The representative said the next few days will see afternoon showers and some lightning as well and the associated cloud cover has taken the edge off the heat.

He said some excessive heat warnings in central and west Montana as well as much of the Hi-Line have been rescinded, but warnings in the east will stay in effect.

He said the heat will return later in the week along with increasing winds Wednesday in west-central Montana, but a system they’re tracking that will likely arrive later in the season might break the heat more permanently.

The representative said dry conditions will be at their worst on Friday of this week.