Lightning, dry conditions and very low humidity are creating high fire hazards. Forestry officials say there are hundreds of firefighters fighting blazes across the state, who are receiving help from the Lower 48 and Canada.
"We've had a number of red-flag warnings from the National Weather Service that let us know that conditions exist for fire that ignites quickly and moves fast, and these red-flag warnings have been in effect essentially for days," Weaver said.
The Eagle Trail fire, which was started by lightning, is now 15 percent contained, and that's good news for people in the area. Residents of the village of Tanacross and the Eagle subdivision near Tok returned home after they were evacuated last week.
A park ranger spotted the Eklutna Lake fire about 9 p.m., burning in a remote canyon area about 10 miles south on the East Fork trail. Fire officials believe it is human-caused.
"Every time we have to throw resources at a preventable fire like this, it's a crime," Weaver said.
More than 20 campers in the area were evacuated, and several trails remain closed.
According to the Division of Forestry, the Turquoise Lake fire approximately 70 miles southeast of McGrath has burned over 22,000 acres, destroying the Farewell Lake Lodge and several outbuildings. Firefighters from McGrath and the lodge's caretaker were safely evacuated.
A non-permitted cabin on nearby Valeska Lake was burned, and another permitted cabin on the lake was directly threatened. Firefighting aircraft from Fairbanks dropped retardant to protect a cabin to the north of the flame front.
The Rohn-to-Nikolai leg of the Iditarod Trail runs directly through the burn, and there are many cabins in that area.
And the Gilles Creek fire about 27 miles northeast of Delta Junction also jumped to 20,000 acres. Luckily, firefighters say that fire is not threatening any buildings.
The Toklat fire, about 25 miles southwest of Nenana, has grown to over 69,000 acres.
Meanwhile, in Juneau Saturday afternoon, forestry crews and local firefighters worked together to put out a small fire that got out of hand near the Hank Harmon Rifle Range. A burn pile left unattended quickly spread, covering about 200 square feet, but the fire was put out before it reached the nearby forest.
The state says 15 new fires popped up Saturday. Six were lightning-caused, six were human-caused and the other three are still under investigation.
Contact Christine Kim at ckim@ktuu.com and Jackie Bartz at jbartz@ktuu.com
