Otter surveys Cape Horn Fire damage

BAYVIEW - Gov. Butch Otter toured the Cape Horn Fire from the air and on the ground, as some evacuees returned to their homes on Thursday.

The governor toured the fire in an Idaho National Guard Blackhawk helicopter in the morning to get a feel for its size and watch the air attack on the fire in person.

Although heavy smoke obscured views, Otter said he was able to watch helicopters drop water on the flames.

"Still some pretty good hotspots up there," Otter said at a news conference. "And from what I know about fire management, it's pretty tough to fight because it's very, very steep and it's going uphill. An aerial attack, as long as you have the visibility, is about the only way you're going to get that."

During a press briefing after his flight, Otter thanked all of the partners that were working hard to put the fire to rest.

Fire officials also briefed Otter on the status of the fire, saying most of the homes in the area are out of danger, but there are still risks of rockslides and falling trees in the steep areas of the charred landscape.

The main focus on the firefight has shifted to the northern flank of the fire, where very steep terrain is making it difficult to get heavy equipment in, said Ron Naber, fire operations manager.

He said if the crew can get a line built within the next couple of days, that would buy him time for the long mop-up period.

Depending on weather, Naber said, the fire lines could take as long as four or five days to complete. There is a chance of thunderstorms over the next few days, and that could complicate matters.

The number of firefighters continues to increase, while the size of the fire itself is receding.

The fire was down from the initial 2,000 acre size to 1,155 acres when Otter was briefed around noon.

Many of the assisting agencies briefed Otter on the progress they have made under mutual aid agreements and memorandums of understanding.

Fire officials told Otter that the Cape Horn Fire is at the top of the national priority list, ensuring that every effort will be made to stop the fire quickly.

So far only one minor injury has been reported despite the rugged terrain, falling trees and rock slides. Crews are also cautious of abandoned mine shafts that are in the area.

Fire crews escorted Otter's motorcade through the Cape Horn Road communities that had been evacuated. The governor stopped at one home that had been completely destroyed while its owner was in the hospital.

Bill Larsen, a public information officer with the Northern Rockies Incident Management Team, was driving one of the vehicles in the motorcade. He said a group of people stayed behind to protect their homes, along with their neighbor's homes and pets.

"One of those guys is a retired fire chief that stayed back in here," he said, adding they have a small group that calls itself the Cape Horn Volunteer Firefighters.

Larsen said one of the main reasons evacuees were allowed to return home on Thursday was because Kootenai Electric Cooperative was able to replace burned power poles and melted electricity lines in one night.

"I would have thought that would take three or four days to accomplish," he said. "But they did it overnight."

Larsen pointed out areas where the fire was pushed downhill by 40 mph winds that caused the fire to rip through some houses and spare others.

Many of the houses have been painted red with fire retardant, which Larsen said is water based but added it might take some scrubbing to clean it off.

"You can power wash it or scrub it off, but the longer it stays on there the harder it is to get off," he said, adding the retardant planes slow to 100 mph before dropping the retardant but it weighs twice as much as water does.

"So when they drop it, it fills every nook of the house," he said.

While rumors still abound in Bayview explaining the cause of the fire, investigators will only say the fire remains under investigation.