Department of Community Services

2004 - Yukon Wildfire Bulletins

Current Fire Danger Ratings
Burning Restrictions
2004 Bulletin Archive

Wildfire Bulletin #48

July 15, 2004 - 10:00 AM

Fire Along Carcross Road Near Whitehorse

A fire along the Carcross Road near Bear Creek by Whitehorse was actioned by fire crews last night.

A lightning strike hit a tree and it ignited. The fire was reported by RCMP. Upon arrival the fire was found to be 0.01 hectares in size. A helicopter, a Whitehorse ground crew, and the Mt. Lourne fire department fought the fire.

The fire was declared under control at 9 p.m. Fire crews will be returning to the site this morning to officially call it out.

In other news, Dawson City's Emergency Measures Organization (EMO) held a public meeting last night to dispel rumors about the current fire situation in Dawson.

No evacuation order has been issued for Dawson City although the fire situation is being constantly monitored.

Fire officials also gave a brief overview of the fire situation and explained how data is used to predict how and when fires become active.

New Fires-Past 24 Hours
Carcross Road, Bear Creek XY#20 0.01 hectares Fire was actioned by the Mount Lourne VFD and Whitehorse fire crew and should be called out this morning. The cause is lightning.
Yukon Fires Being Actioned
Goldfields Complex DA #9,10, 21,30, 37 Over 127,000 hectares French Gulch (21): No new spread on this fire. Good progress was made on the access road to the southern tip of the fire. At the east flank, ¼ of the dozer line is complete. Dawson (30): Crews continued to make progress on reigning in the growth of this fire. Spot fires on the on the west side of the Dempster Highway have been contained. There were new spot fires torching under heavy smoke and cooler temperatures. Dominion (10): Crews expect to complete cat guard on the east side running southeast from the highway in attempt to tie the fire into a swampy area.
Frances Lake WL#17 25,000 hectares Northeast hose line was widened to 100 metres. The southeast area by Frances River to the Highway hot spotted with helicopter support. The fifteen protected sites in the area are being monitored.
Tom Lake near Sa Dena Hess mine site WL#26 7,500 hectares Main objectives on the western flank are nearly complete. A few hot spots remain at the southwest corner of Tom Lake. Helicopter bucket and hand tools also working northeast corner of west flank.
Bow Creek and Seymour CA#04 15,538 hectares Fire crews extinguished a section of fireline because it was approaching the highway. The line has been cold trailed.
Chain Lake CA #08 13,600 hectares Site protection on structures, including a burnout.
MacMillan CA#09 200 hectares Selkirk First Nation cabin has been covered in sprinklers. There will be a burnout conducted in a couple of days around the cabin.

Advisories

Travelers are advised to drive along the Klondike Highway between 4 a.m. and noon, as those are slow burning periods. Pilot cars are in place, if required. Travelers are urged to phone the Yukon Road Report for current updates at 867-667-3710 or 1-877-456-7623 before traveling.

Any residents in the Yukon concerned about smoke are encouraged to call their local nursing station or hospital.

Although the current fire ban has been modified for southern Yukon and the far north, Wildland Fire Management would like to remind people that burning fires only applies in commercial and government campgrounds. The forest floor is drier than it appears. Also, smoke from fires outside of commercial and government campgrounds is often reported, and consequently fire crews must go out and investigate.

There have been 192 fires in the Yukon burning over 1,120, 000 hectares of forest.

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For Yukon Wildfire updates, call 1-800-826-4750
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Current Fire Danger Ratings
Burning Restrictions
2004 Bulletin Archive