SHERIDAN COUNTY, Wyo. — Saturday, Sep. 27 marks one year since the Elk Fire broke out across the Bighorn National Forest.
In total, the fire burned 98,000 acres of land, including parts of Sheridan, Dayton, and Parkman, Wyoming. The Elk Fire burned consecutively for 48 days, until Nov. 14, 2024, when snow finally extinguished the flames.
See footage from the 2024 Elk Fire compared to recent footage of the Bighorn National Forest below:
Another Wyoming fire with similar magnitude and destruction was the Yellowstone Fire of 1988, which burned over 790,000 acres of land.
According to Sheridan County Sheriff, Levi Dominguez, over 3,000 residences were evacuated throughout the event.
On Friday, MTN revisited several Sheridan County organizations and business that helped reshape the community after the fire.
“It was challenging for everyone,” said Dominguez.
It was Dominguez’s second year as Sheridan County Sheriff when the Elk Fire broke out. He told MTN that while it was a scary, unpredictable, and catastrophic event, the Elk Fire was an opportunity to learn and collaborate.
“Everybody coming together was a collaborative effort, and at the federal level when we had that critical incident management team come in. But, I think the collaboration between all of the first responders and our community was something special to see,” said Dominguez.
Dominguez said at some points, the Elk Fire grew over 20,000 acres within a few hours, due to the high speed of the mountainous winds. Because of the quick growing flames, the Elk Fire forced first responding agencies, such as the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Forest Service, and Sheridan Fire Rescue to collaborate in order to determine effective evacuation strategies.
“Looking back, of course there’s things that we can approve upon,” he said.
At the same time that first responders were working on extinguishing the Elk Fire, nearby community organizations and businesses came together to support them.
For instance, the Tongue River Valley Community Center in Dayton acted as a meeting space for local officials to strategize steps moving forward.
"Both of our centers got used a lot during that time. But, it was real emotional as it just was affecting so many people," said Carly Sanon, the center's executive director.
According to Sanon, the community center was closed for a week as first responders used the space for meetings. Eventually, the center was reopened to the public as a safe place during the fire.
"You know, with it going on people still wanted some sort of normal," Sanon said. "For me... I needed to be support for those people that it was directly affecting, our members, our donors."
Before the Elk Fire began to rapidly expand, Sanon said the Tongue River Valley Community Center organized an inaugural fall festival for the Dayton community. However, it was canceled when the fire wasn't quickly extinguished.
On Friday, Sanon told MTN that the community center plans on holding the fall festival for the first time this October, on the 11th.
Sanon reflects on the Elk Fire with with regret, now that the Bighorn National Forest looks drastically different than the evergreen forest she remembers falling in love with years ago.
"Now a year later, you can look at the mountain and it looks a lot different," she said.
However, Sanon is excited to return to normalcy this fall, and is grateful the community was able to collaborate at such a difficult time.
"It was so close and it was affecting so many people," she said.
Similar to the Tongue River Valley Community Center, the Parkman Bar and Grill welcomed first responders and community members as a space of refuge and safety.
"Our community here in Sheridan, surrounding areas and states, reached out to me with the most community support I've ever seen or heard of," said Patricia Caywood, the bar's owner.
Caywood told MTN that after the fire began to spread in Parkman, she closed down the bar to the public for a period of time to exclusively serve first responders and locals in need of fresh and hot meals.
"I'm sure that we would all come together again to support one another," she said.
When Caywood reflects on her experience with the Elk Fire, she recalls the role that community collaboration had on residents' survival and perseverance.
"I absolutely love where I live. You know, we're blessed to live where we do," Caywood told MTN.
Caywood noted that after the Elk Fire, the Parkman Bar and Grill had huge success, and she thanks her local community for supporting her as she gave away free meals to locals and first responders.
"Remember to give back," she said.
In the same way that Caywood closed the Parkman Bar and Grill to serve first responders and the community, the Bear Lodge Resort closed for two weeks when the Elk Fire was at its peak.
"It was a little hectic. We had a lot of customers asking a lot questions that we couldn't answer," said Sharee Jorgensen, the event planner for the resort.
Jorgensen said the flames of the fire were within four miles of the resort, and due to evacuations, only employees and first responders were using the building.
"I don't think everybody can say they've been that close to a fire," Jorgensen told MTN on Friday.
Employees at the Bear Lodge Resort tend to reside at the hotel during the busy summer and winter months. Because the fire forced the resort to close its doors earlier than expected, Jorgensen said some employees had to evacuate the premises with nowhere to stay once they left the mountain. Jorgensen said the community welcomed employees of the Bear Lodge Resort with open arms.
"The first responders helped us get employees down the mountain. Sheridan City was great with housing and things like that for our employees who ended up needing to leave much earlier than they were anticipating," she said.
Jorgensen said although the quickly growing Elk Fire was intimidating, she said it gave staff at the Bear Lodge Resort an opportunity to work together to strategize future emergency situations.
"It helped us solidify a lot of our emergency plans, or you know make sure everyone knew what we would do in the case of an emergency," Jorgensen told MTN.
In all, although the Elk Fire left 10,000 acres of devastation, touched the lives of 30,000 northern Wyoming residents, and left an everlasting scar on the Bighorn National Forest, those involved say there was a bit of positivity in the end due to community support and collaboration.
"Our community came together at a time of need, neighbors helping neighbors," said Dominguez.
"Everyone's perspective on what was going on is going to be so different," Sanon said.
Jorgensen told MTN, "We were able to recuperate with a good winter, and you know, we had a pretty good winter season."
Caywood finished her interview by saying, "We didn't think it could happen here. It's something small that... actually impacted everybody in our community."
See MTN's previous reporting in chronological order on the Elk Fire below:
'Here to help'" Parkman Bar and Grill gathers donations to help those fighting Elk Fire
Elk Fire in Wyoming estimated at more than 25,000 acres
Elk Fire at 32,000 acres, Dayton, Wyoming residents remain cautious
Elk Fire in Wyoming reported at nearly 50,000 acres
'Families in crisis: Wyoming's Elk Fire burns, putting life on pause in Dayton
'Protect your own': Dayton man describes fury of Elk Fire tearing through his neighborhood
Elk Fire at more than 79,000 acres, 900 firefighters protect key infrastructure
Elk Fire moving south, Big Horn, Wyoming residents comfortable but ready
'Blessing to have': Sheridan County residents relieved by rain during Elk Fire
Pieces of the Puzzle: Elk Fire is personal for those protecting people and property
Elk Fire cuts into hunting season in northern Wyoming
Now that the Elk Fire is mostly contained, the damage is visible across the mountains
Elk Fire management gives update before team transition
