PLAINS, Mont. (AP) -- Hand crews and nearly a dozen aircraft narrowly saved this Clark Fork River valley town from a wind-whipped wildfire that forced some people to evacuate, authorities said Tuesday.
The 2,150-acre Baker fire raced through dry grass after being sparked Monday by a piece of farm equipment and shifted toward the town of about 1,100 by nightfall. The blaze burned within 20 yards of Plains, but nobody was hurt and no buildings were lost, incident commander Dewey Arnold said.
''We didn't lose as much as a doghouse,'' he said.
At least 25 homes were threatened Monday night, and officials said they did not know how many residents were forced to evacuate. All of them had returned home by Tuesday afternoon, Arnold said.
The blaze Tuesday was burning away from Plains toward a heavily timbered ridge peppered with several homes, state Forester Bob Harrington said. None were in immediate danger, but Arnold worried that if the fire reached the ridge, ''in another week or so it could be up in the trees taking off.'' Hot, dry weather is forecast later this week.
To date, the fire has cost the state about $1 million to fight, Harrington said.
Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who visited Plains on Tuesday, said he was considering mobilizing the Montana National Guard for additional help.
On the Crow Indian Reservation, the Big Horn fire remained 95 percent contained Tuesday and crews turned responsibility for the blaze over to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Crow Tribe.
The fire burned an estimated 5,800 acres and has cost more than $1 million to suppress, said Pat McKelvey, fire information officer.
The fire erupted this past week from a lightning strike and was almost fully contained until a weekend thunderstorm pushed it across about 400 more acres.
''There's a little bit of heat we're going to still have to work on,'' McKelvey said. ''It's raining now up there. We even had snow at the helicopter base at top. It's going to be pretty cool, but as we warm up the fire is going to heat up again.''
In north-central Montana, the Knox fire, burning in the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and on some private lands, remained at about 1,800 acres but was now 25 percent contained, fire information officer Marilyn Krause said. Nearly 170 firefighters were assigned to the fire and expected aid from cooler, overcast conditions, she said.
In southwestern Montana, the Berry Meadows fire, burning in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, was estimated at nearly 500 acres and 65 percent containment, said Jack de Golia, a fire information officer for the Dillon Dispatch Center. Containment was expected late Tuesday as long as the weather stayed cooperative, he said.
State officials also announced heightened fire restrictions in western Montana to take effect early Friday, generally involving campfires and smoking.
Campfires will be allowed only in developed recreation sites or campgrounds and only in the metal or concrete fire rings provided at those sites, officials said. Smoking also will be prohibited except within buildings, vehicles, developed recreation sites or in areas cleared of flammable materials.
State officials say the restrictions apply to all lands outside of designated city limits and will remain in effect until there is a long-term improvement in the fire danger.
