Bad forecast for Western firefighters

BOISE, Idaho (CNN) -- Firefighters in Western states face a less-than-helpful weather forecast Saturday, which is expected to contribute to raging wildfires that have already burned thousands of acres of woodlands and forced evacuation of many areas.

"We have a pretty good promise of a little rain, but not for a few days," said CNN meteorologist Jill Brown.

A front containing low humidity and gusty winds -- which likely would contribute to the wildfires -- is predicted to move across Idaho and western Montana on Saturday night, according to Brown.

"We think that those winds will die down somewhat tomorrow, so some improvement here in the Northwest," Brown said. "The other thing that we think will help out somewhat is the temperatures will come down. We've had a lot of days in the 90s (Fahrenheit) , even upper 90s, but now forecast highs are in the 80s and even 70s and it looks like by about Tuesday into Wednesday we'll get some rain" in the area.

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Four new blazes were reported Friday, bringing the total of active U.S. wildfires to 33. Most of them are in the Northwestern states of Washington, Idaho and Oregon. Others are in Nevada, Texas, Wyoming, Montana and California.

More than 2.5 million acres have burned so far this year, still several thousand acres shy of the annual average.

Three fires -- Icicle, Spruce Springs/Dome Complex and Rex Creek -- have burned more than 12,000 acres in Washington state.

Strong winds swelled the Icicle fire in Wenatchee National Forest from 2,300 to 3,800 acres on Friday, with firefighters helpless to contain blazes directly on the mountainous area's steep slopes.

Meanwhile, about 800 U.S. Army troops from two battalions at Fort Lewis, Washington, are scheduled to receive firefighter training this weekend before being sent to the fire lines, according to the Pentagon.

The troops will join more than 22,000 firefighters -- including about 900 Army National Guard, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve personnel, as well as several hundred inmates in support roles -- battling wildfires nationwide.

Eighteen homes threatened by the Icicle fire were evacuated Friday, with scores of others in the canyon put on alert for evacuation. This blaze will likely be the first test for troops in the Fort Lewis military battalions when they complete training next week.

Around 150 residents of Monument, Oregon, have been briefed on evacuation procedures should a blaze -- six miles away -- move closer to the town. The 21,000-acre fire is only 10 percent contained, but cooler weather has aided firefighters.

"The fire is so big and our resources are so few, we can only fight the fire on our terms," said fire information spokesman Dave Wells. "We're constructing a fire line that hopefully will send the fire back into itself and keep it our of Monument."

The 812 firefighters in this area, including 100 members of the Oregon National Guard, are battling intense heat, exhaustion and physical ailments as well as fires, as are thousands of others fighting blazes throughout the Northwest.