The Alum Wildfire was reported on Sunday, April 12, in McCreary County, four miles northwest of Whitley City, KY. While initially reported at four acres, winds and extreme fire weather on Sunday night expanded the fire to roughly 650 acres.
Cliffs and rugged topography make for challenging firefighting conditions, and access is limited. Firefighters worked late into the night to establish containment lines around nearby at-risk structures despite extreme fire behavior and challenging conditions. Today, firefighters focused on strengthening containment lines, extinguishing spot fires, and planning for a strategic burnout operation to further protect Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area.
More than 80 personnel are supporting firefighting operations. A Type 2 helicopter capable of dropping 300 gallons and a bulldozer capable of clearing forestland are also assigned to the incident.
The 650-acre wildfire is located between Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area and Highway 27 near Alum Boat Dock and Yahoo Falls.
Yahoo Arch Trail, Yahoo Falls Road, and a portion of State Highway 700 (Alum Road) are currently closed. We anticipate additional road and trail closures along Alum Road and within the Yahoo Falls area as suppression operations progress. 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.