Except for the Kootenai River Complex in northern Boundary County, all fires in the Idaho Panhandle National Forests have contained, controlled, or out.
However, that does not mean the end of fire activity nor crew work in the area of fires, IPNF officials said in a press release.
“After a fire, loss of vegetation can expose soil to erosion; water run-off may increase and cause flooding, soil and rock may move downstream and damage property or fill reservoirs, putting community water supplies and wildlife habitat at risk,” they said.
Priority is given to emergency stabilization efforts to prevent further damage to nearby property or National Forest lands. Although work cannot be performed on private land, private landowners can benefit greatly when neighboring public lands are treated by Burned Area Emergency Response program efforts, officials said.