Ten Percent Containment

Day 319: Today's update from InciWeb shows the Alder Lake Fire at 10% containment. What exactly does that mean? Does it mean they have it under control? Does it mean it's 10% out? No, and no. It means that they have created firebreaks around ten percent of the involved area, i.e., crews have removed fuels and cleared roads to a width which they expect will stop further spread of the fire across those lines when it burns to meet them.

The fire is currently most active in inaccessible terrain with a 60% slope and is moving south toward Pleasant Valley (to the left in the center bottom image). However, new hot spots (night shot) have also appeared to the west, but northward progress toward the lake is being held from entering second growth at the 74 Road (lower edge of the smoke line in the center bottom photo). If you're a map-reader, compare the two maps to see how rugged the terrain is. Today, the guys greeted me with, "The maps are still rightside up!" I was glad to see it.

I stayed on site for about an hour and a half last night, watching the west end's hot spots flare and dwindle, trying to capture an "exciting" photo for my readers. For all else it does, my Canon SX30 IS falls down when it comes to taking low-light images. Even at ISO 400, the grain is intolerable.

The forecast rain has not yet appeared on the scene. I had less than 15 seconds of light mist early this morning, and precisely two raindrops struck my windshield on a trip to and from town. Those firefighters need a lot more help than that from Mother Nature if they're going to have this one out before it reaches Pleasant Valley.