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CNN Live At Daybreak

Wildfire Still Raging Near Yellowstone

Aired August 02, 2001 - 07:41   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: Some cooler weather is sort of helping firefighters who are battling wildfires in the West. Just take a look at this map. We've been talking about these for the better part of a week now. Fires burning in several different locations. We're going to focus on the Yellowstone Park -- the fire that's near Yellowstone Park.

Bobby Kitchens is a fire information officer. He joins us now by phone from a firefighter's base camp that's right in Yellowstone National Park.

Good morning. Bobby, can you hear me all right?

BOBBY KITCHENS, FIRE INFORMATION OFFICER: Yes, I can.

MCEDWARDS: Great. What's it...

KITCHENS: Good morning to you.

MCEDWARDS: What's it looking like there this morning?

KITCHENS: Well, of course this morning -- it's cool this morning and the smoke has not started up yet, but we had a very busy day -- it burned more actively yesterday than we thought it would and we're looking for a very active burning day today.

MCEDWARDS: And how are you fighting it? What kind of equipment are you using?

KITCHENS: Well, we are using mostly helicopters and hand crews. We're in a place where we're going to use a little bit of air tankers, perhaps, but the wind going down the canyon has made it too dangerous to -- we can't even get air tankers in there for the last couple days.

MCEDWARDS: OK. Any nearby towns in jeopardy at this point?

KITCHENS: No, not really. It's near the east gate of Yellowstone, though, and all in the park so far and no structures are imminently threatened. But if we don't stop this fire from going east, some structures can be threatened in a day or so.

MCEDWARDS: That's right. And I know a couple of days ago we were reporting that that east entrance was closed down. Is it still shut down? KITCHENS: Oh, it is. It's closed. The fire is actually very near that east entrance and very near the road that comes into the east entrance.

MCEDWARDS: Any sense of how much has been destroyed so far?

KITCHENS: Yes, we had a fire -- we were -- actually had two different fires and they had a little bit of an area in between and yesterday afternoon became very active and burned together. Acreage estimates now about 1,800.

MCEDWARDS: OK, so what are you telling tourists who might be wanting to visit?

KITCHENS: Well, all the other entrances are open and so it's a very small part of Yellowstone access that's closed. So tourists can still, of course, get into Yellowstone, they just have to go around to another entrance.

MCEDWARDS: So you can get in and still enjoy some parts of the park safely?

KITCHENS: Oh, yes, and...

MCEDWARDS: OK.

KITCHENS: ... most of it. It's just right there at that east gate and the road from the east gate to Fishing Bridge is closed, but Fishing Bridge is open.

MCEDWARDS: All right. Bobby Kitchens, information officer there, thanks very much for your time this morning.

KITCHENS: You're welcome.

MCEDWARDS: OK. They need some help from the weather, too.

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: You bet.

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