VIDEO: Last week, the Marshall Fire in Colorado burned more than 1,000 structures. It came just weeks after the West Wind Fire tore through Denton, Montana, in early December. Here in the Helena area, authorities say those were reminders of just how devastating wildfires can be – and that it’s no longer a problem just confined to the summer.
“If we don’t have snow on the ground, we’re basically in fire season, so be prepared,” said Rocky Infanger, Wolf Creek-Craig volunteer fire chief and project manager for the Tri-County FireSafe Working Group. Both of those recent fires were driven by extreme winds, and Infanger said they show just how dangerous it can be when fire conditions are at their worst – and that fires can spread to places you might not expect to be at risk.
“It’s not that it can’t happen here; it’s basically when it’s going to happen here,” he said.