Good. I hope it causes a major regional balckout.
Montana wildfire threatens power line
Wednesday, August 10, 2005; Posted: 9:59 a.m. EDT (13:59 GMT)
=B7 Special ReportMISSOULA, Montana (AP) -- A wildfire threatening a
major power line in western Montana is kicking up and firefighters
might not be able to keep up with it, a fire official says.
High wind pushed the fire Tuesday afternoon, and fire boss Bob Sandman
said it had the potential to run a mile or more over a 24-hour period.
The fire jumped bulldozed fire lines as if they weren't there, he said.
"We knew that once the fire jumped Nemote Creek that we were in a horse
race, and it turned out that our horses weren't that fast," Sandman
said.
That fire and another nearby blaze were both potential threats to a
major Bonneville Power Administration transmission line and officials
said an air tanker was assigned to help protect the line
"This is a high priority fire because of the BPA power lines," said
fire information officer Pat McKelvey.
Westbound traffic on I-90 was restricted to one lane through the fire
area.
In southeastern Washington state, firefighters said a 41,000-acre
wildfire that had destroyed an estimated 100 residences was about 35
percent contained.
The fire moved more slowly Tuesday, although humidity remained low and
temperatures were in the mid 90s, said Earl Bassett, a fire crew
spokesman.
The fire, which started Friday, was moving into rougher terrain in the
Umatilla National Forest.
The National Interagency Fire Center said 31 large fires were active in
Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho,
Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon and Washington. So far this year,
wildfires have charred 5.2 million acres nationwide, compared to 5.6
million acres at the same time last year.
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