Alum Fire Update for April 20, 2026
The Alum Fire in McCreary County remains estimated at 1,100 acres and 72% containment. The Daniel Boone National Forest and Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area are jointly managing this Type 3 incident under Unified Command with a full suppression strategy. Public and firefighter safety is the highest priority in managing this fire.
State Highway 700 (Alum Road), Yahoo Falls Road and associated recreation areas reopened today (April 20) after fire crews finished clearing snags and confirmed the roads were safe for public use. Firefighters will continue to monitor control lines and “mop up”—seek out and extinguish hot spots to prevent reignition—until the fire has been deemed fully out.
This will be the last update shared to Facebook unless there is a significant change in fire activity or area conditions. We’ll continue to share regular incident updates on our website until the area is free from actively burning wildfire and associated firefighting efforts. https://www.fs.usda.gov/…/active-wildfire-near-yahoo…
The 1,100-acre wildfire is located between Big South Fork NRRA and Highway 27 near Alum Boat Dock and Yahoo Falls.
Alum Trail and a portion of the Sheltowee Trace National Recreation Trail remain closed. Please avoid the impacted area and give fire crews and aviation resources space to operate safely.
A helicopter is providing aerial support for suppression efforts. If a drone is spotted in the vicinity, we will be forced to ground all aerial support for the safety of the pilot. Help keep our wildland firefighters safe by treating all fire operations as a #NoDroneZone.