UPDATE: The Horse Gulch Fire has burned nearly 11,000 acres as of Friday morning, according to data from the National Interagency Fire Center.
The Lewis and Clark Co. Sheriff's Office issued additional closures and evacuations Thursday. Evacuations are in place from Jimtown Rd. to York to Vigilante Campground, as well as previous evacuations still in place from Cave Gulch to Magpie Gulch, north and south of Canyon Ferry Rd.
Hellgate Campground is closed and Canyon Ferry Road is closed from Canyon Ferry Village to 1.5 miles into Broadwater County at Hellgate Gulch.
The Red Cross emergency shelter at Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church remains open, with free water, snack and information.
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A wildfire burning on the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest north of Canyon Ferry is now listed at 7,600 acres as of Thursday, up from the last report of 600 acres Wednesday evening.
The Lewis and Clark Co. Sheriff's Office issued evacuation orders Tuesday evening for residents from Cave Gulch to Magpie Gulch, north and south of Canyon Ferry Road. Canyon Ferry Road is closed from Canyon Ferry Village to the Broadwater County line.
The Red Cross has opened a temporary evacuation shelter at Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church, 3580 N. Benton St. in Helena. Free water, snacks, and information is provided at the shelter.
The Horse Gulch Fire was reported Tuesday afternoon and has been identified as human-caused. It's burning five miles south of York and two miles north of Canyon Ferry.
On Wednesday afternoon, aerial firefighting pilot Juliana Turchetti, 45, was killed while flying a water scooper tank plane that crashed into a mountainside on a mission for the Horse Gulch Fire.
A Type III team has been ordered to the fire, which is burning in dense timber with heavy dead and down fuels.
The Lewis and Clark Co. Sheriff's Office has put temporary flight restrictions in place for the area around the fire and is asking people to please keep drones away from the area.
