BOISE (Idaho Capital Sun) — Idaho fire officials are preparing for above normal fire potential in parts of the state due to high temperatures and dry conditions. 

Idaho Department of Lands fire management chief Josh Harvey told Gov. Brad Little and other members of the Idaho State Board of Land Commissioners on Tuesday that the southern portion of the state has already experienced temperatures well above average, coupled with precipitation levels that are below average. 

“The significant wildfire potential outlook for July shows above normal fire potential for southern Idaho – and this is above normal fire potential that’s already present in southern Idaho, and extends into portions of northern Idaho into August and September,” Harvey said during a land board meeting at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise. 

In response, the Sawtooth National Forest will enter Stage 1 fire restrictions on Wednesday, while the Central Idaho Restriction Zone will go into Stage 1 fire restrictions on Friday, Harvey said. 

Under Stage 1 fire restrictions, building, maintaining, attending or using a fire, campfire or stove is prohibited except within a designated recreation site or on a person’s own land when using an owner-provided fire structure, according to the Idaho Department of Lands. 

“So the season ramps up, fire managers are talking, (and in) North Idaho we have discussions coming up about going into restrictions there as well,” Harvey added.

Once again this year, the majority of fires that state fire officials are tracking have been caused by humans. This year, 99 of the 116 fires that state officials are tracking have been human caused, according to the Idaho Department of Lands. The remaining 17 fires this year were caused by lightning. 

Fire near Idaho’s Redfish Lake increases in size

The Bench Lake Fire burning in the Sawtooth National Forest near Redfish Lake grew to an estimated 1,250 acres in size by Tuesday morning, according to the Great Basin public information team’s incident report for the fire.

As of Tuesday, more than 200 firefighters were fighting the Bench Lake Fire, which started July 11. 

On Sunday, crews were able to use helicopters and scooping aircraft to dump more than 370,000 gallons of water collected from nearby Redfish Lake onto the fire, fire officials said. However, as of Tuesday morning, crews were reporting the fire was 0% contained. 

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to the Great Basin public information team. 

A community meeting about the Bench Lake Fire is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday at Stanley Community Building, 500 Eva Falls Ave., in Stanley. 

Fire danger in Yellowstone National Park listed as ‘high’

The fire danger in Yellowstone National Park remains at “high” after the designation was raised law week. 

In a news release issued July 10, Yellowstone National Park’s public affairs office announced that park officials were increasing the fire danger from “moderate” to “high.” 

A day later, Yellowstone National Park officials announced that they were closing three rivers to fishing due to warm water temperatures and low river flows. Officials closed the Madison River, Firehole River, Gibbon River and their associated tributaries to fishing until conditions improve. 

Yellowstone National Park remains open to the public. The latest fire information for Yellowstone National Park is available online.