Wyoming’s Fishhawk Fire Doubles in Size to 10,321 Acres
A wildfire which forced evacuations Wednesday evening in northwest Wyoming has more than doubled in size in a 24-hour period.
The Fishhawk Fire grew to 10,321 acres with no containment as of Thursday morning, according to a brief update from fire managers. The blaze is located roughly 42 miles west of Cody on the Washakie Wilderness, south of US 14/16/20 and a few miles east of Yellowstone National Park.
The fire was patrolled and monitored overnight with firefighting resources readily available if necessary.
Rocky Mountain Incident Management Blue Team, a type two interagency group, assumed command of the response at 6 a.m. Thursday.
Cabins in the Kitty Creek drainage were evacuated. The mandatory evacuation order also applied to the Buffalo Bill Boy Scout Camp on the North Fork of the Shoshone River.
Because the fire is burning in standing dead timber and hazardous terrain, fire managers deemed it too dangerous to insert ground crews to directly fight the flames. As of Wednesday evening, no direct action had been taken against the blaze.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation. It was first reported Monday at an estimated 500 acres in size.
The blaze grew to 4,500 acres as of Wednesday morning, but thick smoke in the area frustrated mapping efforts as the day wore on. An infrared flight allowed for accurate mapping overnight.
No injuries or property damage has been reported in connection with the wildfire.
Fire managers said a full update would be available later Thursday morning.