Fire behavior in north central Idaho was tempered by cooler conditions and low wind on Tuesday.
The Type-2 team managing the 25,000-acre McGuire Complex near Dixie is scheduled to rotate off of the fire for mandatory rest later this week and will be replaced by a larger Type-1 team. The cool temperatures allowed firefighters to be more aggressive, particularly in the area north of Dixie where the fire had pushed across the 1188 Road. They also worked to build line around spot fires that jumped across the 222 Road between Dixie and Red River on Sunday when high winds caused intense fire activity.
The mild weather enabled crews on the nearly 22,000-acre Sheep Fire near Lucile to make progress on the northeast flank near the John Day and Slate Creek drainages. Firefighters are working on lines and hope to be able to direct the fire away from structures in the two drainages. A 12-mile section of the lower Salmon River from the new Lucile boat ramp to Twin Bridges remains closed to give helicopters room to safely dip for water.
The fire is about 15 percent contained. Helicopters were productive on the Powell SBW Complex burning east and south of Powell, where the weather was also mild. The complex, which includes three large fires, has burned 42,880 acres on the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness Area.
