Single Publication

Pioneer Fire Update for July 17, 2024  

Incident Commander Jeff Dimke

Complex Incident Management Team Northwest 12

541-861-5808, staffed 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 2024.pioneer@firenet.gov 

There will be a Manson community meeting tonight at 5:30 PM at the Manson High School. The meeting will also be streamed live on the Pioneer Fire Information Facebook page. Please submit questions in advance to 2024.pioneer@firenet.gov or via Facebook Messenger. 

There also will be a Stehekin community meeting tomorrow at 6 PM at the Golden West Visitor Center.

Size: 23,529                          

Start Date: June 8, 2024                     

Location: 31 miles NW of Chelan, WA

Containment: 14%              

Personnel: 776                                   

Cause: Human-caused, under investigation

Resources Assigned: 18 crews, 9 helicopters, 20 engines, 23 water tenders, 18 heavy The Pioneer Fire is burning within a mountainous and remote area on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest near Lake Chelan. Firefighters are using a full suppression response in the Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Wilderness to protect values at risk, life, and property, with firefighter and public safety as the primary objective. The communities of Chelan, Manson, and Stehekin are open and continue to welcome visitors. 

Operations: Firefighters capitalized on the successful Monday night firing operation around Round Mountain yesterday by initiating a limited point protection firing operation along Fish Creek, from the mountain’s north side down to the lake. This point protection operation was successful. Several miles away, fire behavior increased and moved into Hunt’s Creek, unrelated to the point protection firing operation. Firefighters also completed the indirect contingency line along Cooper’s Ridge toward Parrish Peak. 

Firefighters and fire engines from the Pioneer Fire have been assisting Chelan County Fire Districts 5 and 7 with structure assessments in and around Manson. They will continue to coordinate with the local fire districts to ensure accurate structural assessments and inventory data are available if the need arises. The forecasted turbulent weather today with gusty outflow winds may cause profuse spotting and high-intensity fire behavior in active drainages such as Flick Creek, Middle Fork Prince Creek (Cub Lake) and East Fork Fish Creek, which has extensive bug-killed and downed timber. Firefighters from the Pioneer Fire are available to assist with new initial attack fires in the area.

Safety and Closures: The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest has a closure order in place for much of the fire area. Details and maps are available at: https://bit.ly/PioneerClosure. There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) in place over the fire: https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_4_6779.html. Drone activity is prohibited under the TFR, as helicopters cannot fly with unauthorized drones present.

Evacuations: The Chelan County Sheriff extended the level 3 evacuation up lake to Hazard Creek along Lake Chelan, now encompassing Safety Harbor to Hazard Creek. Level 1, 2 and 3 evacuation levels remain in effect around the Pioneer Fire. Please visit https://t.ly/QoH9w for more information.

Weather and Smoke:  A Red Flag Warning is in effect today for dry thunderstorms and abundant lightning, and a heat advisory remains in effect. The air quality outlook can be found at: https://bit.ly/PioneerFireSmoke. Learn more about smoke at http://wasmoke.blogspot.com/. The fire marshal issued fire danger ratings and restrictions: https://t.ly/WLBds.