East Idaho town being evacuated because of approaching wildfire

About 300 residents of the town of Howe in eastern Idaho are being evacuated by the Butte County Sheriff’s Office in response to a quickly approaching wildfire.

The Howe Peak Fire started burning at around 1 p.m. Thursday about 4 miles south of Howe. The fire had grown to more than 1,000 acres by 6 p.m. and was moving north toward the community. The blaze jumped Idaho 33 and was burning on both sides of the road. The highway is closed from Howe to the junction of U.S. 26, and Rocky Mountain Power has shut off electricity because of the fire, officials said.

The fire was only a mile or so away from Howe at about 6 p.m., Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman Kelsee Griffee said.

About 70 to 80 local and federal firefighters are battling the fire with the help of air tankers. The blaze has no containment and is burning through grass, brush and juniper in steep terrain, according to a BLM news release.

Nonetheless, officials said they are hoping to contain the fire by Friday.