The Bristol Bay region has seen multiple wildfires this month. The Iowithla River fire has expanded to 36,559 acres this week and is 10.5 miles northeast of Dillingham. Brentwood Reid, a public information officer with the Alaska Division of Forestry, said Wednesday the fire is being actively monitored.
“We sent an aerial detection aircraft out there and they took a look at it yesterday, and we also are monitoring with satellites. And right now, there’s only activity on the northwest corner of the fire,” he said.
The fire is 14 miles from Aleknagik, and although it is expanding in other directions, it has not gotten any closer to the community. Last week, fire boss planes dropped water in the area on its southwest border near Wood River. Reid said there’s no heat in the southeast corner where the fire is pinned between the Iowithla River and a creek to the east.