Despite rain, threat of wildfires will remain into October

Sporadic showers and cool temperatures Monday continued to aid crews battling wildfires across the region, but officials cautioned that fire season could linger into October.

Much of the forest remains tinder-dry, with conditions conducive for rapid fire spread, said Shoshana Cooper, acting public affairs officer for the Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

“In order to get a season-ending event, we’d need 2 inches of rain in a 24-hour period, and continued precipitation,” she said.

In some areas, rain and higher humidity levels helped slow the fires’ advance and allowed firefighters to attack burning areas directly. However, the downed logs and other large, woody debris in the forest remain drought-cured and highly flammable.

“I was on a fire (in the Kettle Complex) Sunday that was making runs through the rain,” said Franklin Pemberton, a spokesman for the Colville National Forest. “We’ll likely see fire activity until the snow flies.”

About one-tenth of an inch of rain fell on parts of the Colville forest over the weekend. The Idaho Panhandle received rainfall measuring from one-half inch to 1.4 inches.

Rain showers and cool temperatures are predicted throughout the week, with a return of sunshine by the end of the week. Once the rainy weather passes, officials said, steady winds and dry conditions could bring fire conditions back to where they were a week ago.

Fire closures remain in effect for large areas of public timberlands in both Washington and Idaho, which affects wood-cutting, some early hunts and other recreation opportunities.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game is extending the deadline to exchange tags for some early elk hunts in the Panhandle, Clearwater and McCall areas that have been affected by fire closures. Hunters have until Sept. 11 to decide whether to exchange their tags for another elk tag, keep them or turn them in for another tag later in the year.

Hunters have been contacting both the Colville and the Idaho Panhandle forests about getting into their favorite areas.

“The challenge for folks is to be patient this year,” Pemberton said.