Burned area response experts study burn severity on the Jolly Mountain Fire north of Cle Elum on Sept. 30. The team found moderate and high burn intensity on 16 percent of Forest Service land involved in the fire.
Burned area response experts study burn severity on the Jolly Mountain Fire north of Cle Elum on Sept. 30. The team found moderate and high burn intensity on 16 percent of Forest Service land involved in the fire.
Sixteen percent of U.S. Forest Service land within the boundaries of the Jolly Mountain Fire in Upper Kittitas County this summer burned at a moderate or high intensity, according to a report from forest officials.
The report released last week said of the 36,817 acres that burned in the fire, 25,857 acres were managed by the Forest Service. Of that, 49 percent had very low or unburned conditions, 35 percent burned at low severity, 15 percent a moderate severity and 1 percent, or 224 acres, had a high burn severity.
Field assessments found that 18 percent of the burned area exhibited strong water-repellent conditions, the report said.
The fire started Aug. 11 and was caused by lightning. It burned near Lake Cle Elum into the Teanaway, and also affected the Salmon la Sac area. No structures were lost, and no one was seriously injured.
In addition to Forest Service land, the fire also burned 1,498 acres of state land and 9,462 acres of private land.
The report was prepared by the Central Washington Burned Area Emergency Response team, which completed a report on Oct. 23, and requested initial funding of about $125,720 for emergency treatments.
“Now that post-fire assessments and mapping are complete, we are targeting the specific areas of the Forest that pose the greatest post-fire risks,” Forest Service hydrologist Molly Hanson said in a news release. “Work on the ground is starting now and could last until next fall.”
The team recommended repairs to nine miles of roads and trails and treatment to limit invasive plants on 130 acres.
The Forest Service recommends landowners living near burned areas monitor weather reports and public safety bulletins to be aware of potential landslides and flooding.
