How Olympic National Park will respond to wildland and structure fires

PORT ANGELES, Wash. — An updated plan released Thursday details how crews will handle fires in the Olympic National Park.

The plan divides the response into two categories – the wilderness management unit and the non-wilderness unit.

The non-wilderness unit will focus on developed areas, such as visitor and administrator areas and access road.

Crews will respond to non-wilderness fires with a “suppression-oriented” response and protect developments while preventing the fire from spreading.

This comes on the heels of a fire that burned down the Hurricane Ridge Day lodge in May of last year. The fire smoldered for a while before it was discovered, and no cause to the fire could be found.

Alternatively, the wilderness unit will manage fires in natural areas of the park. According to a news release, the wilderness management unit aims to preserve the character of the wilderness and protect other natural resources.

Wildfires in the wilderness will be evaluated to figure out how crews should respond.

The new plan goes into effect in June.

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