Harris Mountain Fire is now 51% contained

GREAT FALLS — The lightning-sparked Harris Mountain Fire (Inciweb) several miles south of the town of Cascade has burned an estimated 31,591 acres and is 51% contained, as of Wednesday morning (August 11).

There will be a final community meeting on Friday, August 13, at 10 a.m. at Wedsworth Hall (13 Front Street South) in Cascade.

Additional crews and favorable weather the past few days aided in progress towards containment on the southern portion of the fire as well as the portion southeast of Cox Creek. Fire activity is expected to remain low today with continued smoldering in concentrations of heavy fuels and occasional interior smokes as fuels begin to dry out.

Current and Planned Activity: Firefighters will continue to work along the fire’s edge in the south and southwest portions of the fire where accessible by foot. Efforts to bring sprinklers, hoses and pumps out of the fire area and back to the Incident Command Post are ongoing. On the north end, suppression repair efforts have begun on fireline that is no longer needed. These efforts include pulling back the berms created by dozers and handline in order to minimize long term impacts on the ground.

Evacuation Update: As of August 9th, the Cascade County Sheriff’s Office rescinded all evacuation orders and pre-evacuation notices related to the Harris Mountain Fire in Cascade County.