Rex Trulove
In this image by ERIN JUSSEAUME Clark Fork Valley Press, the fire has moved over and engulfed the top of a ridge. It is moving in a line down the other side of that ridge. It doesn’t show up, but there are homes at the base of that ridge, next to the river. It is truly amazing that through the immense personal effort of the firefighters, not one home was destroyed. You can imagine how difficult it was to prevent houses from being destroyed.
Sadly, this ridge was formerly the home of a large population of mule deer, elk, bighorns, cougars, lynxes, and a huge number of squirrels, hares, owls, hawks, and many more animals. Many more deer used it as wintering grounds.
