BRAD HORN/Nevada Appeal Firefighters watch a video on top of a brush truck while the Jackass Flat fire burns near Wellington early Wednesday morning. The U.S. Forest Service crew was on hand for structure protection of a ranch. At that point, the fire was 2.5 miles away.
Heavy rains that fell for more than an hour over Antelope Valley on Tuesday afternoon helped firefighters gain the upper hand on the Jackass Flat fire that has burned about 6,300 acres, according to Topaz Lake Fire Chief Dave Thomas.
Thomas' crew was relieved Wednesday morning after a 20-hour shift protecting homes scattered along Eastside Road heading toward Risue Canyon.
"It rained so hard we thought there wouldn't be any paint left on the engine," Thomas said. "Lightning was striking all around us. One strike came down right near the engine and scared the (expletive) out of us.
"Right then, a woman came out of the house we were watching and we had to tell her to go back inside because of the lightning activity. She told us that the house had been hit by lightning, too. When we went inside, we could see the damage of black streak marks running down one of the walls."
No additional damage was reported, Thomas said.
The fire was 30 percent contained Wednesday evening and is expected to 100 percent contained by 6 p.m. Friday.
The fire has been burning since a lightning strike July 17 in the remote area south of Wellington.
The blaze has destroyed nine square miles of piñon and juniper trees, as well as cheatgrass.
No structures were destroyed, but officials were concerned about threats to sage grouse nesting and breeding habitat in the area and cultural resources.
Resources assigned to the fire include 265 personnel, 39 command staff, seven air tankers, nine hand crews, two helicopters, four bulldozers and 10 engines.
The Type 1 Incident Management Team assumed responsibility for the fire at 6 a.m. today.
Risue Creek Road is closed, and an area closure is in effect from Jackass Flat-Risue Creek to the national forest boundary.
Jackass Flat fire
Estimated acreage
6,135
Containment
30 percent as of 6:30 p.m.
Control
Expected Monday
Location
Seven miles south of Wellington near the Douglas and Lyon county line
Closures
Risue Creek Road is closed to public travel. An area closure is in effect from Jackass Flat-Risue Creek to the national forest boundary.
Threats
• Fire is about a mile from 10 to 15 homes on East Lane in Antelope Valley
• Sage grouse habitat
• Residents and visitors will see smoke in the valleys in the morning hours • Smoke-related inversions should lift each day about 9 a.m. hours
Priority
Structure protection
Air support
7 air tankers
2 helicopters
1 air attack observation plane
Ground support
4 dozers
9 hand crews
10 engines
39 command staff
265 personnel
Responding units
U.S. Forest Service, Mono County, Lyon County, East Fork Fire and Paramedic Districts, the U.S. Marine Mountain Warfare Training Center, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Nevada Division of Forestry, Nevada Highway Patrol and Nevada Department of Transportation