The Nation : Fires Near Yellowstone Peril Two Towns

Fires near Yellowstone National Park posed a threat to two Montana towns, while smoke from Idaho’s fires has led to dangerous air pollution. In Montana, officials were concerned about two fires burning in rugged, timber-covered terrain just over the Yellowstone park border. They said the Hellroaring and Storm Creek fires in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness in Wyoming could merge soon and possibly burn into Cooke City and Silver Gate, Mont., and the nearby Silver Tip Ranch. Idaho’s Air Quality Bureau has placed the entire southern part of the state under an air stagnation advisory because of limited visibility and air pollution caused by the smoke from the forest fires. Officials said about 25,500 firefighters in the West were battling blazes in record heat. They said firefighters in Oregon had managed to get the upper hand on the largest fire in the state this year, a 49,700-acre blaze.