Parker Ridge Fire grows, with more spread possible;  community meeting set for Thursday

August 5, 2015

The Parker Ridge Fire has grown approximately 25% in area since yesterday. Currently, the fire is at 103 acres, still with 0% containment. "Fire activity continues to be moderate with more growth," say fire officials. The nature of the land and the number of standing dead timber and down timber continue to represent a problem for fighting the fire. "The high amount of standing dead trees within and around the fire presents substantial safety hazards to firefighter wellbeing. These numerous dead trees are extremely unstable and may fall over at any given time unexpectedly with the increased winds. Because of this threatening safety issue, the team managing the incident is using air resources to scout the area, looking for safe approaches and possible areas of operations to assault the fire," officials said in their report. Fire management also continues to assess nearby structures and the risk of possible structural involvement, with ongoing refinement of their plan for structure protection. The Parker Ridge Fire "will continue to spread with increased wind and better ventilation, with the occasional torching of standing trees," said the fire management team. A community meeting has been set for tomorrow evening, Thursday, August 6, at 6:30 p.m. to be held at the football field bleachers at the high school. At that meeting, representatives of the Arizona Central West Zone Type 3 Incident Mgt Team, the Bonners Ferry Ranger District, the Panhandle National Forest,and others will share the latest status of the fire, fire management strategies, and address any fire related questions or concerns.