Significant progress made Saturday on Bison Fire in Douglas County
Despite gusty winds and low humidity, firefighters made significant progress Saturday on the Bison Fire burning in the Pine Nut Mountain Range in Douglas County, reaching 30 percent containment with full containment expected Monday.
The fire swelled early Saturday morning to 7,000 acres after winds fanned the flames overnight. However by Saturday night the number was revised to 6,330 acres after mapping and GPS surveying, according to Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center.
Burning five miles east of Gardnerville, the fire began Thursday afternoon. A 1,000-acre backfire was set Saturday to burn off interior vegetation, said Sierra Front Spokeswoman Elayn Briggs.
"They made good progress on the fire today," Briggs said. "They've had good air support and ground support, working predominantly on the north flank of the fire."
Working the fire are some 500 personnel including 7 air tankers, 8 helicopters and more than a dozen ground crews, at least five of them being hot shot teams, Briggs said.
Wind continues to play a factor in the spread of the fire, she said, with the fire being pushed north and northeast in the direction of about 20 homes. Voluntary evacuations remain in place. There has been no damage to structures and no injuries have been reported, she said.
On Friday night the fire crested the ridge south of Mount Siegal, the tallest peak east of Gardnerville. Due to the complex nature of this fire, the Great Basin Type II Incident Management Team (Whalen) has arrived at the Incident Command Post at the Douglas County Fairgrounds and will assume management of the fire Sunday morning at 6:00 a.m.
Pine Nut Road at Out-R-Way has been closed to non residents until further notice.