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Updates as of 10 a.m. Aug. 26: 

- Temperatures dipped down to 45 degrees near the fire last night which caused RH levels to go up. The cool moist air has settled in the valley; however, the fire is currently located on the mid slope where the air is a little warmer and drier which continues to support fire activity with some visible torching this morning. With the lack of strong winds today the smoke will linger.

- A cold front will arrive tomorrow causing winds to gust 25 to 35 mph.

- Last night, the Infrared reconnaissance flight that was scheduled to get a new fire perimeter was unable to fly due to maintenance. The fire is still estimated to be at 1,048 acres in size.

Resources today:

• Air Attack is currently flying a reconnaissance mission to collect fire information
• Helicopters will be performing bucket drops
• Firefighters are building contingency lines 

More information to come.

Update as of 7 p.m. Aug. 25: Sharrott Creek Fire 

In the foothills, hundreds of firefighters are actively engaged in protecting structures, building fire lines to limit fire spreading to the east, and continuing to scout for additional opportunities to contain the fire. More resources, including firefighters and support personnel, are on their way and will be transitioning into a Type 1 Team by Tuesday morning. Acreage size is about the same.

Attached is a new fire perimeter based off an Infrared Reconnaissance flight last night. Acreage is listed at 1,048.

This morning, firefighters continue to work on improving structure preparations to make sites more defensible in priority areas. Helicopters are focusing on dropping buckets of water on the lower portion of the hill to protect property below. These operations will continue all day.

Yesterday, air tanker pilots dropped 48,000 gallons of retardant and helicopter pilots dropped 52,000 gallons of water. These efforts helped to counter fire behavior during the day even though there was a small increase in size overnight.

For the safety of our flyers, please do not fly UAS (drones) in any of these areas. This is dangerous to our flyers and brings flight operations to a halt.

Current as of Aug. 24: Air resources have been dropping retardant and water since this morning. This afternoon an Infrared image showed the fire to be at 1012 acres. There was minimal fire spread to the east assisted by fire crews and aviation. Crews have been actively assessing and protecting structures as well working on control lines.

The Ravalli County Sheriff and the Bitterroot National Forest information trailers are set up in the Super 1 Parking Lot in Stevensville.

The Red Cross quickly set up an emergency evacuation center last night at the LDS church at the intersection of Eastside Highway and Middle Burnt Fork Rd in Stevensville.

Local Type 3 team, Incident Commander Dave Tingley

Location:  4 miles west of Stevensville

Start Date: 8/23/2024         

Cause: Lightning 

Size: 1,012 acres

Resources: multiple resources, air and ground 

Evacuation Orders For Sharrott Creek Fire:

Fire Managers and Ravalli County Sheriff have ordered Evacuations due to the Sharrott Creek Fire for the following residential areas:

-Kootenia Creek, west of the intersection of Timber Trail, to include residences on Timber Trail.

-West, of the west side of Sharrott Hill Loop, to include residences on Blue Grouse Lane, Redtail Hawk Lane, and Porcupine Lane.

-Marmot Lane west of Saint Marys Road.

-Saint Marys Lookout Road, west of the intersection of Saint Marys Road.

An Evacuation Order means:

This is the time to move out of the area IMMEDIATELY for safety reasons. This is not the time to move personal property and livestock. If you choose to ignore the order, you must understand that emergency responders MAY NOT BE ABLE TO assist you, and no other persons will be allowed into the area.

Download the RCSO app for smart devices for evacuation information. Drive in a safe and orderly fashion on designated routes only. Be on the lookout for fast moving emergency vehicles. Remaining calm and putting your pre-planned actions in motion will be the best way to keep you and your family safe. Please do not remove any exterior flagging or markings that have been placed outside your home. These marking help emergency responders identify who has or has not received notifications.

The Red Cross has been notified and is working to set up an evacuation center. As details are available on the shelter they will be published on the Sheriff's App.

-- The Sharrott Creek Fire started at 3:45p.m. today and was caused by lighting. Due to extreme wind and conditions caused by thunderstorms, the fire is running, torching and long-range spotting up hill and to the north. This fire is 4 miles west of Stevensville in the Bitterroot NF. 30 firefighters are responding or are on scene as well as air attack. Ravalli County Sheriff Steve Holton issued pre-evacuations from Kootenai Creek to St. Mary's as well as road closures in that area. The Sheriff has set up a command post in the Super 1 parking lot in Stevensville. 

The current Incident Commander is Dave Tingley, and a Type 1 Incident Management team has been ordered. 

Expect future closures in the following areas:  Kootenai Creek, St. Mary’s Trail, Big Creek and Bass Creek.

Public notice: for your protection and the protection of our firefighters, please avoid these areas. More information will be shared as it becomes available.