Cooperation praised at Boulder 2700 fire

POLSON — It was an unsettling weekend for residents of Lake County, as the Boulder 2700 fire broke out east of Polson. It was a fire that started out looking like it was going to be handled in good fashion.

Crews from the CSKT Division of Fire Management, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) and other agencies attacked the fire with vigor on Saturday morning.

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In fact, by Saturday night it looked like it was going to be under control -- but that's when things changed. The wind shifted, and the fire exploded back across Highway 35, forcing additional evacuations between Yellow Bay and Finley Point late Saturday night into early Sunday morning.

But through it all, Lake County Sheriff Don Bell says people have been extremely cooperative -- and he appreciates that.

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"From the law enforcement perspective, the fire guys, like 50 or 60 miles around, everyone, every fire department, every station sent crews,” Sheriff Bell said. “So that really helped. And then the community actually helping each other to help evacuate and get prepared so that helped."

• Click here to view a photo gallery of the Boulder 2700 fire

Sheriff Bell says that cooperation will continue to be appreciated as the firefighting effort will continue in the coming days. For one thing, he says to watch out for officers as they continue to do various forms of traffic control in the fire vicinity.

He is also asking that people keep their boats out of Skidoo Bay because the area needs to be clear for those firefighting aircraft to pick up those water drops.