BUTTE -Fire crews are mopping up a wildfire that occurred about a mile southeast of the Basin Creek Campground just south of Butte. Forest Service officials say it’s very unusual to see this kind of fire behavior this time of year.
“We’ve felt like we’ve been kind of jolted into what we call, you know, our fire season,” U.S. Forest Service Fire Information Officer Terina Hill said.
The Basin Creek Reservoir was reported on the afternoon of Feb. 28th, about 11 miles south of Butte. As of March 2nd the progress of the fire has been halted to about 6.7 acres.
WATCH: Late-winter wildfire near Butte alarms Forest Service officials
“We do have crews out there walking the line making sure that the perimeter is cool, mopping up the hot spots,” Hill said.
Officials say it’s uncommon to have a wildfire this time of year on the north slope, shaded by trees and above6,100 feet in elevation.
“This time of year in that specific spot where this fire was located, should have snow on the ground in those north slopes, and the fire behavior normally seen that we saw with this fire usually happens during our core season, somewhere in July, August, and September,” she said.
The cause of the fire will be investigated by Forest Service law enforcement. While the fire is located within the Basin Creek Watershed Project area, where controlled slash pile burning is taking place, officials report no controlled burns were occurring in the area of the wildfire at the time.
