County commissioners set to hand Kinky Creek Fire to Idaho incident team

Teton County commissioners will vote Thursday on a joint delegation of authority that would transfer tactical command for non-federal lands affected by the Kinky Creek Wildfire to the incoming Idaho Type 3 Incident Management Team, creating a unified command structure with Jackson Hole Fire/EMS, according to a county staff report Delegation of Authority for Kinky Creek Fire Staff Report.

The fire was discovered June 23 in the Gros Ventre Wilderness on the Bridger-Teton National Forest and had grown to about 350 acres as of the report, with potential to spot and run in steep terrain and wind. The delegation is triggered because the incident threatens to cross onto nearby private property (the report cites the Darwin Ranch area). Staff told commissioners there is no immediate fiscal impact, but the county could later enter a cost-share agreement for private-property protection, with some nonfederal costs potentially eligible for reimbursement through the Wyoming Emergency Fire Suppression Account.