Currently, the First Thunder Fire continues to burn just outside of Rapid City. As of now, the 150-acre fire’s cause is unknown, and it’s listed at zero percent contained.
There are some positive developments surrounding the First Thunder Fire. Namely, multiple locations in the area have natural fire breaks because of roads or logging activity.
There are as many as 100 currently working the lines. While reinforcements from Colorado’s Front Range and air resources are looming, fatigue is a real problem. Incident commander Brandon Sanchez said some of the crews are pushing 30-hour shifts.
“When you get an emerging incident like this, it’s all hands on deck and you hope more people will get ordered up," Sanchez said. "We’re caught on this little island in the Black Hills. The Front Range is five hours away for more resources, and luckily we’re getting air tankers. Sometimes, you’ve got to work longer, and the people on the line – that’s their job.”
He adds the fire is moving away from Rapid City and towards the Black Hills to the west. It’s burning on both Forest Service and privately owned property.
As of publication, no structures have been lost, though Pennington County Sheriff’s lieutenant Jason Mitzel said the area needs to be prepared.
“We’re not evacuating anybody right now, however I’d urge anybody that lives in the vicinity to be prepared, get whatever documents, medications, animals, things like that, ready to go just in case the wind switches and the fire starts to expand," Mitzel said. "You can look for evacuation notifications at our Pennington County Public Safety Board, which is on our website and Facebook page. It will give you the most up-to-date information on any evacuation warnings and locations.”
This is a developing story, and more information will be released as the week progresses.