Area fire agencies stage in ‘critical suppression zone’; burning hazardous materials emit black, noxious smoke
A burning building just south of Eielson Air Force Base ignited a wildfire that spread to about 3 acres Wednesday afternoon. There were no reports of injuries, but the fire produced a plume of noxious black smoke and slowed traffic along the Richardson Highway.
The state Division of Forestry got a report at around 4 p.m. Wednesday that a burning structure just east of milepost 344 of the Richardson Highway had sparked a wildfire in a low-density residential area.
“It would be in what we call a critical suppression zone,” says Lily Coyle, a Forestry spokesperson. Coyle said multiple area fire departments responded to what by then had been designated as the Piledriver Slough Fire.
“It was Salcha Fire and Rescue, Eielson Air Force Base and Golden Valley Electric Association, along with Division of Forestry and Fire Protection resources that responded initially,” she said in an interview Wednesday.
Coyle said Golden Valley was called in because the fire was burning near power lines. Salcha dispatched firefighters and engines, and Forestry sent crews, equipment and two helicopters for water drops.
“So we had air resources, and we had multiple firefighters and on-the-ground crews responding,” she said.
Emergency vehicles staging along that stretch of the Richardson Highway created some traffic delays. And firefighters had to hold back in some areas around the property where hazardous materials had caught fire, sending up a plume of dark noxious smoke. Coyle said Wednesday evening that the fire burned about 3 acres.
“They were able to stop the forward progression of the fire and are still on-scene in the area, working on suppression efforts and structure protection,” she said.
A Forestry news release says the Federal Aviation Administration imposed a Temporary Flight Restriction in the area while the helicopters were operating.
Salcha Fire and state Fire Marshal officials were unavailable to comment Wednesday evening on an investigation into the fire.
Editor's note: The Forestry Division revised its initial estimate of the fire's size to 1.2 acres Thursday morning and declared the fire extinguished.
