TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — On Saturday, KMVT received a news tip that two large fires had broken out on the other side of Balanced Rock Canyon, forcing the closure of northbound 4300 North Road. The damage the fire left behind: blackened fields with residue from the flame retardant used to fight the fire.
We checked with the BLM and they say the fire started around 6:30 p.m. Saturday. The BLM, along with the Buhl and Castleford fire departments and the Three-Creek Range Land Fire Protection Agency, helped extinguish the fires across approximately 2,200 acres.
“There were multiple uses for this fire. It was a typical wind-driven fire that burned fast, long and thin thanks to the wind, the soil and those prominent fuels,” said Ryan Berlin, BLM fire information officer for Twin Falls.
“It burned into the night until the wind died down and the firefighters were able to completely surround it. And by mid-morning, about one or two in the morning, they had it pretty much surrounded and the fire activity was subsiding,” Berlin said.
According to Berlin, the fire was human-caused and the BLM is still investigating the cause of the outbreak.
“It’s still hot and dry in southern Idaho, so be careful when you’re outside recreating or in that tall, dry grass. Firefighters are currently stretched thin with all of their national resources across the United States, so be careful and don’t start any new fires,” Berlin said.
Although the fire was determined to be human-caused, BLM reports it was not intentionally set. North Road has been reopened to the public.
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