NEWS RELEASES
Horse Creek Fire Continues To Spread
Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through NPS's website.
NPS reports that the Horse Creek Fire continued to grow in Sequoia National Park, despite increased air operations. The fire is currently 30 acres in size. After use of water drops on the fire showed little effectiveness, air tankers began making fire retardant drops instead. Today, the fire retardant lines held overnight and fire crews are being inserted in to construct direct fireline. Crews cleared a helicopter landing zone near the fire yesterday, allowing for easier insertion of ground crews. At 6:00 p.m. today, a Type Two Incident Management Team is scheduled to assume control of the fire.
Firefighters are taking full suppression action on this fire. Due to the extremely steep terrain, dense forest and brush, large amount of tree mortality, and lack of trail access, this lightning-caused fire poses challenges for ground operations. The fire is highly visible for several miles on the south side of the Mineral King Road, and is burning in wilderness. The Mineral King Valley is seeing an increased amount of smoke, especially overnight. Due to this and the increased amount of fire personnel traffic on the Mineral King Road, the following will be in effect: Effective Monday, July 23, wilderness permit holders will not be able to start any trips until further notice. Walk-up permits will not be issued; The Atwell-Hockett Trail and the Tar Gap Trail remain closed; Mineral King Campgrounds remain open but could close with little notice; and only day-hiking is permitted on open trails.
For questions about wilderness permits in Sequoia National Park, please call (559) 565-3766, and for more information on the Horse Creek Fire click here.
California, Environmental Issues, National Parks, News, Open Road