June 3, 2021 4:20 a.m. 

The Mehl Creek Fire burning southwest of Elkton is now 80 percent contained.

Kyle Reed of the Douglas Forest Protective Association said resources assigned to the day shift on Wednesday made great progress on the blaze. 115 firefighters with the support of four water tenders, two bulldozers and two helicopters completed fire lines around the perimeter of the incident by the early afternoon hours.

Reed said once fire lines were completed, crews shifted their efforts toward extinguishing smokes and smoldering material within the fire area. Crews started the process, known as mop-up operations, near the outside edge of the fire and will work their way into the black with the objective of fully extinguishing the fire. Reed said this process can take several days to a week or longer depending on the site. Smoke from the interior of the fire may be visible while this work is being conducted. 45 firefighters remain engaged on the fire, continuing the mop-up process.

Reed said both aviation and ground resources working on the Mehl Creek Fire during Wednesday’s day shift operations worked to better map the incident. While the fire has yet to be fully mapped with GPS coordinates, resources believe the fire is closer to 100 acres in size rather than the previous estimate of 150-200 acres. More accurate mapping will be conducted in the coming days.

Reed said heavy fire traffic in the Mehl Creek area will continue for several more days. While there are no road closures in place, motorists are reminded that fire equipment and personnel may be parked on or working near Mehl Creek Road and are asked to slow down and use caution when driving through the area.