As of Monday, the Bear Creek fire on the north side of Lake Cushman has grown to 684 acres and remains at 19% contained.

The human-caused fire is near Mount Rose in Olympic National Forest and Hoodsport. No structures have been damaged.

The fire continues to progress further into Mount Skokomish Wilderness and a previous Bear Gulch Fire scar. The focus continues to be on safely implementing critical objectives and improving primary control lines on the east side of the fire, and trails in the Mount Ellinor and the Big Creek area.

With the help of heavy equipment, hand crews are improving these primary lines by reducing and removing fuels. When weather and visibility improve, crews may be able to have a Type 1 helicopter resume dropping water on the fire to cool down the fire’s progression.

Crews keep improving the Staircase area by refining the sprinkler kits and fire protective wrap on structures. The fire continues to burn in heavy timber and extremely steep terrain which rises 3,500 feet from the lakeshore to the top of Mount Rose and on to Copper Mountain.

The steep conditions limit access and the ability for hand crews to work due to rolling debris, rocks, falling trees and cliffs. In the next couple days, the Western Washington Incident Management Team will be transitioning command to an incoming team.

New fires in the area are stressing local resources. Campfires are only allowed in approved campfire rings in Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest. Please be mindful of fire restrictions and do your part to prevent wildland fires by extinguishing your campfires, properly disposing of cigarettes, and securing trailer chains.

Big Creek Campground remains open. The Upper Big Creek Loop, leaving from Big Creek Campground is closed. This closure remains in effect while crews operate heavy equipment to improve the fireline.

When weather and cloud cover allow, aircraft will continue to use the north end of Lake Cushman for dipping water for fire suppression.

There may be occasional smoke in the afternoons. With the hot, dry weather, communities near the fire such as Hoodsport, Potlatch and Skokomish should expect intermittent periods of smoke.