Wildfire

The Cottonwood Gulch Fire near Manhattan, Montana broke out just before noon on Sunday, October 11, but quickly grew to over 8,000 acres.

Three state helicopters are in route from Helena to help ground crews fight a 3,000 acre wildfire burning in Gallatin County, north of Logan.

Today the U.S. Forest Service awarded three companies exclusive contracts to provide seven Next Generation Airtankers for fighting forest fires. One of those companies resides close by.

The Sheep Mountain Fire located in the Rocky Mountain Ranger District was reported Monday morning at 2,282 acres and growing.

Bitterroot National Forest officials announced today that that they have reached the final stages of a timber sale.

Montana offers some of the most beautiful scenery the United States has to offer. For those who choose to live outside the cities and surround themselves with picturesque views of nature, they often fail to consider the threat of wildfires...

Federal officials say Montana has a safe aviation program, but it is unlikely the state's five firefighting helicopters will be used to respond to blazes on U.S. Forest Service lands this year.

Mineral County and parts of Missoula County underwent new fire evacuations this past weekend as the West Fork Fish Creek Fire continued to grow to over 12,000 acres. But within the past 48 hours, fire information officer Kim Smolt said clear skies have finally led firefighters to get eyes on the fire for the first time since the fire started.

The Sheep Fire, part of the Thompson-Divide Complex, blew up on Thursday, prompting the closure of an 8-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 2 and evacuation notices for more than 100 homes and businesses. However, NBC Montana reports clouds and heavy smoke made the Sheep Fire less active on Friday.

Air quality has been a major problem in western Montana this summer, and many are wondering if this is the worst summer for breathing ever recorded. According to Meteorologist Chris Gibson, it isn’t quite the worst, but it is pretty close...