UPDATE as of 11:30 a.m., Tuesday:

Current Situation: Fire lines held steady overnight with no significant growth. Current mapped acreage is 443 with no containment declared.  Firefighters worked through the night to keep the fire in check. The objective today is to keep the fire in its current footprint thereby lessening threat to the line.  Specific objectives include keeping the fire South of Kerwin Lane, North of Lookout Peak, East of Interstate 90, and West of Lookout Mountain Lane.

Forward progress on the North end of the fire has been stopped as firefighters continue working on the flanks and South side.

State, federal, local, and out-of-state resources are assisting in the interagency firefight.  Significant aerial resources played a key role in Monday’s effort and will continue that support again today.

Weather: Warm and dry conditions with a high near 80 with humidities dropping to 20% or below is forecast for the fire area. Wind gusts from the NW up to 25 miles mph are expected throughout the day.

Public Closures: Traffic is closed in one lane on I-90 northbound between mile markers 10 and 12. Traffic is closed at the following intersections: Kerwin Lane and Highway 85, Kerwin Lane and Lookout Rd., and Lookout Mountain Rd and Airport Rd.  The public is asked to avoid the area due to ongoing active fire suppression activity including personnel and equipment.

Residential Impact: There are no mandatory evacuations in place. Voluntary evacuations remain in place for some residences in the vicinity of the fire.  Please see the Spearfish Police Dept. or City of Spearfish Facebook page for the latest information on road closings and voluntary evacuations. This info will also be shared on the Lookout Fire 2026 Facebook page.  

Temporary Flight Restrictions: There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) over the perimeter of the Lookout Fire. 

SPEARFISH, S.D. – Fire crews in the Spearfish area continue battling a fire in the Lookout Mountain area Monday evening.

Watch Duty listed the Lookout Fire just south of Cactus Place, right off I-90 about 2 miles northwest of Lookout Mountain. 

The fire was reported just after 3:00 p.m. Monday and is now listed at 100 acres.

Fire crews are working on shoring up and strengthening fire lines. A Type III Incident Management Team will be working the fire through the night. 

Witnesses on scene reported heavy smoke coming from the fire when it broke out, as it appeared to be moving very fast across the hills that make up Lookout Mountain northeast of Spearfish.

With numerous homes in the vicinity of the fire, the Lawrence County Emergency Management office sent out a wireless emergency alert that said: 

Please evacuate the immediate area of Lookout Mountain, Kerwin Rd, Lookout Vista rd and surrounding areas – Per a wireless emergency alert from Lawrence County Emergency Management.

Residents helped to round up cattle being affected by the fire and get them to safety as homeowners within the fire’s vicinity prepared to evacuated in case the fire continued its rapid spread.

Numerous aircraft are on scene dropping water and fire retardant on the fire and they remained on the fire heading into Monday evening. 

The South Dakota Highway Patrol reported people stopping on the side of I-90 to take pictures of the fire and they were discouraging that action, reminding people such action makes it dangerous for travelers on I-90. 

This is a breaking story and we will provide updates as we receive them.

Photo courtesy of Clint Brengle