South Moccasin Fire in Lewistown area grows to 5,000 acres; cause unknown

Tribune Staff

The South Moccasin Fire northwest of Lewistown has burned 5,000 acres as of Tuesday afternoon.

The South Moccasin Fire in the Lewistown area has grown to 5,000 acres as of midday Tuesday.

The fire, first reported Monday, is located northwest of Lewistown in Fergus County and west of U.S. Highway 191 between Lewistown and Hilger in the South Moccasin Mountain Range.

There were no evacuation orders in place as of Tuesday afternoon, but officials have closed the Denton Highway (Montana Highway 81) between mile marker 24.8 and 42, which includes the junction with U.S. 191. People are asked to avoid the area in order to allow fire crews to respond to travel in the area without delays.

“Aviation and ground resources responded to the fire (Monday) and will continue through (Tuesday),” reads the South Moccasin Fire update on InciWeb.

“Crews were busy on the fire line (Monday) on the eastern, southern, and northern edges of the fire. Two helicopters were ordered to aid in fire suppression and perform bucket drops," the update continued. "During initial attack, one helicopter executed a precautionary landing after experiencing a mechanical malfunction. A maintenance team is evaluating what repairs need to be completed to return the aircraft to service. Additional aviation support was requested during the maintenance period.”

First reported around 12:45 p.m. Monday, the fire initially burned 1,200 acres prior to Tuesday afternoon’s update. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

David Hamilton of the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation is serving as incident commander for the South Moccasin Fire and the County Assist Team has taken command of fighting the fire.

The National Weather Service in Great Falls issued a Red Flag Warning for northcentral and southwest Montana, including the area of the South Moccasin Fire. Warm fall temperatures were expected to be in the upper 70s to low 80s in the area with southwest winds of 15-20 mph and gusts up to 30 mph.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.