The Pine Creek Wildfire originated 9 miles south of Livingston, Montana on August 29th at approximately 3 pm. The fire started near the Yellowstone River and quickly burned through the town of Pine Creek.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS BYZ wrote it up.
The Pine Creek Wildfire originated 9 miles south of Livingston, Montana on August 29th at approximately 3 pm. The fire started near the Yellowstone River and quickly burned through the town of Pine Creek. After which, it moved into the steep, inaccessible terrain of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness in the Gallatin National Forecast. Local firefighters, helicopters, and retardant airtankers were able to save many homes, the Pine Creek Church, and the Pine Creek Cafe. However, five homes and several outbuildings were lost during the first day of the fire. On the second day of the fire, the fire threatened more homes as it moved south onto private land.
The fuels burned were Timber (liter and understory), heavy, dead standing and down, as well as gray-stage beetle kill trees. The size of the fire was 8,572 acres and will more than likely be revised. The wildfire was contained on October 18th. The cause of the fire is human and remains under investigation. More detailed information can be found at www.inciweb.org.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Billings, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 30, 8:11 PM MST, 3 hours 49 minutes earlier.
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</html>The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, October 2012
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 409548, 409549.