HOPE — A fire in the Lightning Creek drainage has more than doubled in size since this morning, reaching almost 1,600 acres by 6 p.m., U.S. Forest Service officials said Sunday afternoon.

"Yesterday's instability also resulted in a convective smoke column," USFS fire information officer Kary Maddox said. "Overnight, fire behavior was minimal."

The fire remains east of Lightning Creek, burning between the Mud Creek and Trapper Creek drainages.

The growth of the fire has meant a transition to a Type 3 incident, and an incident management team has been ordered along with numerous other resources, Maddox said.

Type 3 teams typically involve an extended initial attack with varying levels of resources, from several single resources to several task forces and strike teams.

About 42 firefight

See Full Page