Crews contain Bandy Fire
(Photo courtesy IDAHO DEPARTMENT OF LANDS) A plane drops fire retardant on the Bandy Fire brush fire near Spirit Lake.
(Photo courtesy IDAHO DEPARTMENT OF LANDS)About 140 acres of grassland in the Bandy Road area between Priest River and Spirit Lake were burned in a fire, which was reported Monday. The fire remains under investigation.
SPIRIT LAKE — Fire crews have completely contained the Bandy Fire.
The fire, which burned about 140 acres, started Monday afternoon about three-fourths of a mile east of Bandy Road outside the town of Spirit Lake in a remote area on a privately-owned ranch. The ranch is surrounded by private forest land, as well as state endowment forest land managed by the Idaho Department of Lands.
IDL fire crews, along with U.S. Forest Service and local rural fire department crews, are maintaining the fire line. Flames have been extinguished and crews are focusing on mopping up areas that are still smoldering, department officials said in a Tuesday press release.
The Bandy Fire was reported about 2:30 p.m. Monday, prompting a series of Nixle alerts and a brief evacuation order for nearby homes. IDL officials said the fire, which was contained primary to grass, is considered to be 100-percent contained. No structures were damaged by the blaze.
For the safety of residents and fire crews, IDL asked the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office to evacuate residents on nearby roads to the north and east of the fire at 5:30 p.m. Those evacuation orders were lifted after several hours and residents told they could return home around 7:30 p.m.
In addition to IDL and local fire crews, aiding in the effort were a large air tanker, a helicopter, and several other aircraft dropping water and retardant as well as a dozer to dig a fireline.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.