Wildfire Ignites in Buttermilk Area
Release Date: May 26, 2011 Bishop, CA
Contact(s): Nancy Upham
Fire resources from multiple agencies have rushed to the scene of a wildland fire in a region of the Inyo National Forest known as the Buttermilk area, popular with climbing enthusiasts. According to officials from the Interagency Dispatch Center in Bishop, the fire broke out shortly after noon and quickly spread due to very high and erratic winds. Firefighters and overhead personnel from the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, Cal Fire and the Bishop Fire Department all responded to the scene. As of late Wednesday afternoon the fire had burned approximately 75 to 100 acres of brush and grass 10 miles west of Bishop, CA.
Combined resources from various agencies responded a dozen engines, 6 hand crews, 3 bulldozers and miscellanious overhead personnel. In addition to the firefighting resources, cooperators include the Inyo County Sheriffs Department, the California Highway Patrol, and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Additional resources ordered for the fire include hand crews, engines and two air tankers. Fire officials cautioned that the strong winds could ground the air resources at anytime adding to the difficulty of firefighting.
The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.