SAM Magazine—McCall, Idaho, Sept. 12, 2022—The Forest Service has declared the Rainbow Fire to be officially under control, five days after lightning sparked the blaze at the top of the mountain. 

The Rainbow Fire began on the evening of Sept. 7. Initial attack efforts kept the fire from spreading beyond the upper Hidden Valley area, ungroomed terrain located to the north of Brundage Mountain’s main front side runs. Smokejumpers and engine crews fought the fire during the first night, and an aerial assault from helicopters and scoopers doused the flames with water and applied fire retardant at the top of Brundage Mountain the following day.

Ground crews circled the fire zone with hoses and worked through the weekend to monitor the perimeter and put out hot spots. The fire was contained to an area of less than five acres.

“The Brundage Mountain team would, once again, like to thank the smokejumpers, firefighters, and fire managers who sprang into action to quickly control this fire,” said Brundage Mountain general manager Ken Rider. 

Brundage Mountain crews will assess the Rainbow Fire scar in the coming days, but the impacts on skiers and riders are expected to be minimal.

“The torching and visible flames the first night of this fire were alarming,” said Rider. “We are beyond grateful that it will have such a minor impact on our overall operations and on the skiing and riding public.”