Lightning, truck sparked wildfires

The Brown's Gulch fire south of Hammett burned 1,000 acres. (Photo by Jordan Maisy Gano)

King Hill Rural Fire District crews responded to a string of fires along I-84 between milemarker 123 to the Elmore/Gooding county line last Tuesday.

The string of fires continued eastward into Gooding county that afternoon, where firefighting efforts there were taken over by that county.

Derrick Janousek with the KHRFD said the fires were sparked by an 18-wheeler that had blown a tire. The driver eventually pulled over at milemarker 150. No information was available as to whether the driver was cited.

Later that afternoon, rural fire fighters were dispatched to a report of smoke south of I-84 near Hammett. Fire crews returned to Glenns Ferry after determining that the fire was on BLM ground in Owyhee County.

According to a news release issued by the Twin Falls Fire District BLM, the fire was located approximately four miles south of Hammett in the Brown's Creek area. Two engines with the Boise BLM district and two engines from the Twin Falls BLM district responded. A dozer and one air attack aircraft also were dispatched to the scene. The lightning-sparked Brown's Gulch fire burned an estimated 1,000 acres.