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Fire! Red Lodge Ski Area Threatened

Fire! Red Lodge Ski Area Threatened

A massive forest fire in Montana’s Custer National Forest is threatening Red Lodge Ski Area. The Cascade Wildlands Fire, has advanced to within a mile and a half of Red Lodge Ski Area. Currently, flames have charred 7,539 acres, fueled by 30 mph winds and heavy blown-down timber. The conflagration has skirted a fire retardant line protecting the ski area, and is now within a mere mile and a half of the chairlift summit. Officials say that the fire is only five percent contained, and 496 firefighters are fighting the fire, up from 114 on Monday. Crews have been hampered by limited road access to the steep, rugged terrain surrounding the West Fork of Rock Creek where the fire is burning.

Fire officials have issued voluntary evacuation orders from the ski area, in addition to earlier evacuation orders for 90 homes near the ski area’s base and another 200 homes in the Grizzly Peaks subdivision already in place. Despite the evacuations, ski area staffers reportedly remain at the base area, watering down buildings with snowmaking equipment. Five summer homes and an outbuilding in the Camp Senia area have already been destroyed.

The fire was first discovered on Saturday afternoon. A cause has yet to be determined

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