Hundreds of acres burn near Trapper Lake

MAT-SU - Matanuska-Sustina Borough officials credit lightning and dry conditions for sparking 18 wildfires in the remote Sustina Valley.

For much of Wednesday and into the early morning hours Thursday, lightning strikes along the Sustina Valley and the west slopes of the Talkeetna mountains has fire responders hopping, the borough reports. The largest fire has burned hundreds of acres and is reported burning near Trapper Lake.

As of 2 a.m. Thursday, the Trapper Lake fire was crowning through the forest and spotting ahead of its path, the borough reports.

The fire is believed to have started at around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday evening, eyewitnesses and firefighting personnel on the ground along the Parks Highway report, where multiple crews took up positions Thursday morning in case the fire moved toward populated areas.

Alaska State Troopers said three homes - two on Trapper Lake and one on Neil - along with four individuals were believed to be threatened by the fire, and a private float plane was dispatched Thursday morning to check out the situation on the ground.

Trooper Andy Evarts said that while the three homes are located adjacent to the two lakes, troopers decided to bring in the private aircraft before sunrise in order to find out if there was a need for any evacuations.

&#8220If we can at all possible get them out, and they want to come out, we want to get them,” Evarts said from the Susitna River Landing, where troopers were surveying the situation.

Officials said they were unsure of the exact size of the fire Thursday morning, though a helicopter was scheduled to survey the scene shortly after sunrise.

The Alaska Division of Forestry's Toma Dean said Thursday morning from the landing that two air tankers from British Columbia were en route to the fire Thursday, and a command post was set up in Wasilla. Dean said fire crews were scheduled to begin active fire suppression efforts after officials could pinpoint the precise location and size of the blaze.

&#8220It's going to be a busy day,” he said.

While he could not say how large the fire is, Dean said crews will have their hands full getting it under control.

&#8220It's a big fire,” he said.

Crews from fire departments across the borough, as well as State Forestry personnel and Alaska State Troopers, began rushing to the area between Houston and Talkeetna as the blaze began to grow shortly after 11 p.m.

By 2 a.m., a thick cloud of ash was dusting parts of the Parks Highway near Talkeenta, although the fire was still confined to the sparsely-populated area west of the river and was not an immediate threat to populated areas.

&#8220In a nutshell, it's on that side of the river,” Dean said. &#8220That's the good news.”

The Trapper Lake fire is burning in heavy black spruce away from the road system making it unaccessable to firefighting personnel, the borough reports. While Alaska State Troopers alert residents in the area, the state Division of Forestry has ordered a Type II firefighting team from the Lower 48, which is expected to arrive later Thursday.

Fire danger remains high

A red flag warning is in effect for southcentral Alaska and open burning is prohibited. See Friday's Frontiersman for an update on area wildfires and fire danger.