The 2018 wildfire season in

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

began around June, 2018 and ended around September, 2018. The Highway 37 Fire is a fire above

Montana Highway 37 Montana State Highway 37 (MT 37) is a state highway in the US state of Montana. It begins in downtown Libby, Montana at US 2 and takes a meandering course northeastwards upstream along the Kootenai River and the eastern shore of Lake Koocanus ...

west of

Libby, Montana Libby is a city in northwestern Montana, United States and the county seat of Lincoln County. The population was 2,775 at the 2020 census. Libby suffered from the area's contamination from nearby vermiculite mines contaminated with particularl ...

at , near a

Superfund site Superfund sites are polluted locations in the United States requiring a long-term response to clean up hazardous material contaminations. They were designated under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCL ...

which is a former

vermiculite Vermiculite is a hydrous phyllosilicate mineral which undergoes significant expansion when heated. Exfoliation occurs when the mineral is heated sufficiently, and commercial furnaces can routinely produce this effect. Vermiculite forms by the we ...

mine. It was spotted on July 19. Firefighters needed to wear respirators to protect themselves from exposure to asbestos mixed with

duff Duff may refer to: People * Duff (surname) * Duff (given name) * Duff (nickname) * Karen Duffy, an actress, model, and former MTV VJ once known as "Duff" * Duff Roman, on-air name of Canadian radio personality and executive David Mostoway (born ...

and bark by mining operations and mobilized by the fire. The Reynolds Lake Fire, caused by lightning on July 17, straddles the

Bitterroot National Forest Bitterroot National Forest comprises 1.587 million acres (6,423 km²) in west-central Montana and eastern Idaho, of the United States. It is located primarily in Ravalli County, Montana (70.26% of the forest), but also has acreage in Idah ...

and Salmon-Challis National Forest southwest of

Darby, Montana Darby ( Salish: snk̓ʷɫxʷexʷem̓i, "Place Where They Would Lift Something") is a town in Ravalli County, Montana, United States. The population was 783 at the 2020 census. Darby is located near the southwestern border of Montana and Idaho, al ...

at . It reached over in extent by July 22.

References

Wildfires A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

Wildfires in Montana Lincoln County, Montana {{Wildfire-stub