Fire burning at Randle’s Iron Creek campground

RANDLE — More than 100 firefighters are working a 17-acre fire in Iron Creek campground in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

The Forest Service reported Thursday there are 188 personnel assigned to the fire in the Cowlitz Valley district, including an 18-person hand crew and a tree-falling team.

The campground is one of the largest in the Gifford Pinchot with 98 spaces.

The fire is burning in old-growth forest, where thick brush, heavy ground fuels and falling trees pose risks to the firefighters.

Crews have set up a sprinkler system along the fire’s edge and are cooling hot spots with hoses, where it is safe to do so.

The Cispus River, Iron Creek and the local roads provide barriers to the fire’s spread.

Campers with Iron Creek reservations can request a refund at https://www.recreation.gov/rules-reservation-policies or reserve another camp in the Gifford Pinchot a https://www.recreation.gov/camping/gateways/1117.

An illegal drone halted firefighters in the early stage of the fires. Drones present danger to aircraft working over the fire.