Sharrott Creek Fire expands to 1,130 acres, community meeting planned for tonight

MISSOULA, Mont. — A new measurement from an infrared flight that flew over the Sharrott Fire last night shows that the fire has now spread over 1,130 acres.

The scans revealed that the largest heat wave and 82 acres of vegetation were concentrated on the east side, but there are also isolated hot spots on all sides.

Outside the main fire area there were small pockets of embers, mainly on the western flank.

A cold front is approaching and fire chiefs are expecting wind gusts of 40 to 56 km/h today.

A Type 1 incident response team will take over the fire this morning. They will answer your questions about fire behavior, response, and evacuations at a community meeting at 7 p.m. at Stevensville High School.

The emergency services are protecting houses and buildings as well as other firebreaks. Helicopters are dropping water.

Evacuation orders remain in effect for some residential areas.