A wildfire that has burned since Friday in the Boise Foothills on the southeast edge of the city still has no estimated contain or control time, according to Chad Cline, Bureau of Land Management Boise District Fire Information Officer.
The Valley Fire has burned just under 8,000 acres and the cause is still under investigation, Cline said. But there is good news: After yesterday’s critical fire weather, things are looking up.
“Today, we’re looking at cooler temperatures and lighter winds than yesterday,” Cline said.
On Friday, Boise actually tied the record for Oct. 4 at 88 degrees, National Weather Service Boise Meteorologist David Groenert said.
Saturday’s forecast high is 74 degrees, Groenert said. It will still be dry but not as windy as Friday.
The winds on Friday didn’t help with firefighting, but the wind did keep smoke out of the city of Boise, Groenert said. The drafts instead pushed the smoke northeast into the mountains.
Boiseans downtown yesterday saw grayish-white smoke rising up into a clear blue sky, the plume framing the downtown skyline.
However, there is potential for smoke to enter the area overnight Saturday into Sunday morning, depending on the fire behavior, Groenert said. If the blaze calms down, there wouldn’t be as much smoke to push into the valley.
The Treasure Valley’s air quality monitors were reporting good air quality as of Saturday morning.
In the meantime, evacuation levels remain the same, according to the Boise County Sheriff’s Office — Robie Creek is at Level 2 and Wilderness Ranch is at Level 1.
Idaho Highway 21 may be closed Saturday afternoon during Bureau of land Management back-burning operations, the sheriff’s office said on social media.
