Stage 1 fire restrictions are in place throughout the Medicine Bow National Forest, and Carbon County Interim Fire Warden John Rutherford expects the county will soon follow suit. Rutherford will likely recommend a burn ban go into effect throughout the county before the end of this month. Pictured above: Photo of the Mullen Fire that burned approximately 176,000 acres in Carbon and Albany Counties in 2020. Photo by Travis Chamberlain.As the weather heats up in Carbon County, rattlesnakes are on the move. People should expect increased snake activity over the next two months. In Rawlins, professional dog trainer and experienced snake handler Ashlea Roberts is reminding the public that instead of killing the snakes, they can call her for safe removal. Roberts uses the serpents in her rattlesnake avoidance clinics. Pictured above: File photo of rattlesnake. Photo by Cali O’Hare/Bigfoot 99.Despite hot temperatures and breezy conditions over the weekend, no growth was reported on the North Fork Fire. First reported a week ago burning two miles north of the Wyoming-Colorado Border near the Huston Park Wilderness area, the North Fork Fire never grew beyond 15 acres. The public information office with the U.S. Forest Service said lines have been completed around the burn area and crews are leaving the area. Officials said previously they suspect the fire was started by a lightning strike. Pictured above: Photo of the North Fork Fire on June 11, 2021. Photo courtesy Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland/Twitter.With more than a dozen wildfires already burning throughout the state, red flag warnings in place, and moderate-to-extreme drought, Wyoming is in for what officials are calling “a significant” wildfire season. Yesterday, Governor Mark Gordon, along with representatives from the Wyoming State Forestry Division, Homeland Security and the Bureau of Land Management held a briefing to discuss the 2021 fire season outlook. Pictured above: Gov. Mark Gordon, federal and state officials pause during a moment of silence for Smokejumper Tim Hart, who died June 2nd. Photo courtesy of Gov. Mark Gordon’s office.
