Southwest Area
Incident Management Team
Incident Commander: Dan Oltrogge
Rough Draw Complex

For Immediate Release

Rough Draw Complex Update, August 14, 2003, 7:30pm

The Rough Draw Complex consists of these fires - the Rough Draw Fire (500 acres), the Slippery Rock Fire (620 acres), Speculator #1 (4 acres), Speculator #2 ( 1/10 acre), and the Hawley Fire (1/10th acre). Resources assigned to the complex include two Type 1 crews, four Type 2 crews, five helicopters, 11 engines, and 5 watertenders, a total of 333 personnel.

  • Rough Draw Fire -Located on the northern boundary of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, at the head of the Mission Creek Drainage, in the Gallatin National Forest. This fire exhibited intense fire behavior beginning around 4:00 p.m., with some group torching and associated spotting, but remains east of Mission Creek. Crews continue to implement structure protection efforts for the structures threatened. The 63 Ranch, north of the Fire was evacuated today. Air support is critical on this fire since it is located in very steep and rugged terrain.
  • Slippery Rock Fire - Located on a northwest ridge above Cottonwood Canyon. This fire exhibited extreme fire behavior today. Beginning arond 2:00 p.m., the fire made significant crown runs and was plume dominated most of the afternoon, roughly doubling in size. It has spread west toward Cottonwood creek, spots are north of Pauline Creek, but dense smoke has prevented determination of how far the fire has spread east toward sheep Creek. Crews continue to implement structure protection efforts for the structures threatened in the Cottonwood Creek area and the historic IBEX cabin. A community meeting was held in Clyde Park today.
  • Speculator #1 - Located on a ridge on the west side of Main Boulder Canyon. This fire exhibited minimal fire behavior throughout the day. The Boulder Creek road adjacent to the Speculator and Hawley fires was reopened to traffic.
  • Speculator #2 - Located on a ridge on the west side of Main Boulder Canyon. This fire is in patrol status and has not shown any activity in four days.
  • Speculator #3 - Located on a ridge on the west side of Main Boulder Canyon. This fire was detected yesterday. It was fully contained.
  • Hawley - This fire is also in patrol status and has not shown any activity in several days.

The 250 homes in the Boulder drainage (Speculator and Hawley fires) are no longer considered threatened. For additional information, please call the Rough Draw Complex Information Center at 406-222-9280. Phones will be staffed from 7:00am until 8:00pm.

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