FRANK SESNO, CNN ANCHOR: Firefighters waging an exhausting battle against western wildfires are getting a boost today. Forecasters are calling for cooler temperatures and rain, the first such weather pattern break, as it's known, in months. CNN's Rusty Dornin joins us now from Hamilton, Montana with an update on the firefighting efforts there. A welcome break, Rusty.</s>RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Frank. The cooler temperatures have given them a break where the 31 fires in Montana did not advance overnight. But the interesting thing is, with all the predictions, there are microclimates, of course, in Montana. And right now, the Bitterroot Valley is warming up and they're predicting locally warmer temperatures today, which means the winds could come up. Now, on the Skalkaho fire, which is near Hamilton, Montana. The -- some North Carolina firefighters you see here were battling to put in a line yesterday afternoon when the winds kicked up. Now, obviously, they work very close to the fire when they are doing this. It's very dangerous work. They are always watching to make sure that they are in a safe area, and also a major concern is to see which way the wind blows.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The winds pick up, a lookout will call for everyone to pull back. The crew boss will</s>DORNIN: So they did not have to look for any safe areas in this case. They were able to successfully put a line around that fire and stop the advance. That's, of course, what they want to happen every day, they hope happens this afternoon on more of the lines. But they are predicting in this area a little bit heavier winds. Now, the weather forecast for the rest of the week is for the promise of rain. So they're hoping to get -- they need significant rain here to do any -- dampen these fires, however, and it may be only a half inch. However, they're hoping for more. Rusty Dornin, reporting live, Hamilton, Montana.
Forecast of Rain Gives Firefighters in Montana Reason to Hope