InciWeb Articles & Incidents for Washington and Oregon

Josephine County Sheriff’s office has issued a level 2 evacuation for the residents of Oak Flats. For more information call

The following post has been posted on the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest website. It provides information about other fires in the area. A Type I Incident Management Team Called in to Assume Management of the Natchez FireRelease Date: Jul 20, 2018 Contact(s): Virginia GibbonsA Type I Incident Management Team Called in to Assume Management of the Natchez FireMedford, OR – As fire teams and managers continue to take an aggressive attack on the multitude of lightning-caused fires, Pacific Northwest Team 3(Livingston), a Type I Incident Management Team, will be in briefed tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. to take over management of the Natchez Fire due to increasing fire activity. The Natchez Fire also includes the Klondike and Granite Fires located in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, and numerous other small fires.All three team managed incidents (Hendrix Fire, Natchez Fire and Sugar Pine Fire) now have pages on our Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest web page at...

A link to the video of the #hendrixfire community meeting held in Ashland on July 20 has been posted to Facebook on the U.S. Forest Service- Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest facebook page, on an event page titled "Fire Information: Hendrix Fire". https://www.facebook.com/R6RRSNF/videos/1721010521300614/UzpfSTIwMDA3NjU3MDY3NTI1MToyMDM0MTk2MzM2NzQyNzg/?notif_t=admin_plan_mall_activity¬if_id=1532032697965860

Upriver Beacon Fire UPDATE July 20, 2018 6:00 PM Northeast Washington Interagency IMT Type 3, Team #2 DJ Greene Unified Incident Commander Spokane County Fire District #9 Division Chief Nathan Jeffries Unified Incident Commander For Immediate Release Spokane, WA, - Firefighters are in the process of coming off the line after another successful day on the Upriver Beacon Fire. Crews were busy throughout the day cooling the remaining hot spots and ensuring all containment lines held. Additional resources were demobilized and some were reassigned to other incidents. All evacuation orders have been lifted. Camp Sekani and Shields Park Climbing Rocks remain closed. Citizens are asked to stay clear of the area in and around the fire as work continues with lots of equipment and personnel. There are still many hazards associated with the fire that citizens may not recognize. Citizen and firefighters safety is our number one...

A morning update with fire officials will be streamed live on the Substation Fire Facebook page at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow.Additionally, a press conference will be held at 8:00 a.m., location is Sherman County High

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE ROGUE RIVER-SISKIYOU NATIONAL FOREST MEDFORD, OR ORDER NO. 06-10-22-18-61 EMERGENCY AREA CLOSURE - NATCHEZ FIRE Pursuant to 16 USC § 551 and 36 CFR § 26 1.50 (a) and ( b ), the following acts are prohibited upon the Wild Rivers Ranger Districts within the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest as described below and shown in Exhibit A. This Order will be effective beginning July 20, 2018 and ending October 31, 2 01 8, unless sooner rescinded . PROHIBITION: I . Going onto or being within an area closed for public health and safety. [36 CFR § 261.53 (e)] DESCRIPTION: The Natchez Fire Area Closure is described as all lands, roads, and recreation sites within the perimeter beginning clock wise from Page Mountain Snow-Park. From the snow park follow FS road 48 South to the junction of FSR 48 and 4812. Follow the district boundary between Happy Camp and Wild Rivers Range r District, to the Southwest...

As of July 20, the fire is 85% contained and has been mapped at 27 acres; no growth in fire size is anticipated. Approximately 70 personnel remain on the fire and will continue working to mop-up remaining hot spots. Additional personnel will be released this evening, leaving approximately 40 firefighters on scene through the weekend. Managers plan to leave equipment staged should it be needed for suppression of hot spots. If necessary, air resources are also available to the fire. Light smoke may be visible from the area, but significant fire activity is not anticipated. There are no impacts to regular operations in Silver Falls State Park - waterfall areas are accessible during normal Park hours. Park managers are evaluating current trail closures - any changes will be

This picture was taken by the #Hendrixfire air attack and shows significant smoke in the area of the Hendrix Fire. Please go to the following links to find information regarding air quality in Southwest Oregon: National Weather Service Air Quality Alert https://forecast.weather.gov/wwamap/wwatxtget.php?cwa=mfr&wwa=air%20quality%20alert Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has posted an article on the Oregon Smoke Blog http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/ Jackson County Public Health has posted information on Facebook with this update and included a reminder for daycare centers, coaches, schools and athletic departments be aware of wildfire smoke and utilize the Public Health Guidance for School Outdoor Activities During Wildfire Smoke Events to make decisions about youth having recess, athletic practices, games, and events outdoors. https://www.facebook.com/jacksoncountyhealthandhumanservices/ Medford School District has also posted information on air quality and...

Prospect, Oregon – Good progress is being made to access, assess and safely engage all the known fires on the High Cascades Ranger District west of Crater Lake National Park. Fourteen known fires are being managed under the collective name Sugar Pine, which is also the name of one specific fire. Yesterday firefighters constructed fireline around two newly detected fires: North Top and Kettle. There was some increase in sizes of the Sugar Pine, Round Top, Sunshine and Goodview fires, but no major spread occurred. Retardant was applied to keep the Union Fire in check, approximately 1 ½ miles from Crater Lake National Park. All the assigned fires were more accurately mapped. Line construction and mop-up continued on several of the smaller fires that have been mostly contained. Keeping the Union Fire at its current size continues to be today’s priority. Containment lines are being constructed around the Sugar Pine and Round Top fires. A strategy to...

An emergency area closure is in effect which includes a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail. Please click on the other tabs from this website - "Closures", "Photographs", and "Maps" for more detailed information.

An emergency area closure is in effect in the area of the Hendrix Fire. Please view the attachments to read the entire order, and a map of the area.The area description from the order is as follows: AREA CLOSURE DESCRIPTION: Closure area is bounded as follows, clockwise beginning at the junction of National Forest Road (NFR) No. 20 and Bureau of Land Management Road 39-2-32 (in T.40S., R.2W., northwest quarter of section 18) and following the National Forest boundary east to Wagner Gap (T39S., R.lW., northeast corner section 34 and northwest corner of section 35) then heading south and then east along the ridge ending at the boundary of the Ashland Watershed, then heading south along the watershed boundary to Wagner Butte and to McDonalds Peak and south until it meets the National Forest Boundary then south to the junction of NFR 20 (Siskiyou Gap) and then follow NFR No. 20 southwest to Jackson Gap and to the northwest to the junction of Road 39-2-32, the point of origin, as shown on...

Upriver Beacon Fire UPDATE July 20, 2018 8:00 AM Northeast Washington Interagency IMT Type 3, Team #2 DJ Greene Unified Incident Commander Spokane County Fire District #9 Division Chief Nathan Jeffries Unified Incident Commander For Immediate Release Spokane, WA, - Overnight, crews continued to patrol the fire perimeter and identify hot spots inside established containment lines. Firefighters will be addressing those areas today as we begin to start winding down suppression operations. Crews have started to demobilize and are being reassigned to other fires burning around the state. All evacuation orders have been lifted. Camp Sekani and Shields Park Climbing Rocks remain closed. Citizens are asked to stay clear of the area in and around the fire as work continues with lots of equipment and personnel. There are still many hazards associated with the fire that citizens may not recognize. Citizen and firefighters safety is...

The Miles Fire continues to be the highest priority of the 25 fires being tracked and suppressed by the Incident Management Team. Due to the advance of the fire, a level 2 evacuation notice was issued by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday afternoon for Tison Road, affecting about six residences. No other evacuation notices are in effect in Douglas County. The Columbus and HD fires are within ½ mile of growing together, separated only by Serviceberry Creek and the 2950 Road, and are being managed together as the Columbus Fire. “This fire will be around for awhile,” said Operations Chief Vince Grace, referring to the lack of containment opportunities within the large, steep unroaded area to the east of the fire. A drone will be used today to assist firefighters in scouting out potential fire line locations. Warm and dry conditions continue throughout the fire area, with highs in the mid to upper 80’s (F) and relative humidity ranging from 18 to 25 percent...

The night crews continued to make progress on the fires. But, with the winds and low humidity overnight, the fires on the Garner Complex continued to be active. The Grave #3 fire was reported at 800 acres and continued to grow overnight. The Section #14 Fire was at 160 acres and active overnight. Smoke and ash from both of these fires is blowing south into the community of Wimer and surrounding areas. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office issued a Level 2, BE SET, evacuation for homes on Graves Creek Road, north of Ditch Creek. Seven addresses are affected. Contact the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office for details and maps. The Pleasant Fire was at 400 acres. A new spot fire was found and crews began working to contain it. Crews will focus on this fire by opening addi- tional roads to the fire for easier access. They will continue to secure the line on the north side of the fire. Evacuations remain at a Level 2 for Pleasant Creek road between the addresses of 5047-7948. A Level...

General Updates: Firefighters are in the mop-up phase of containment on the Cemetery Fire. Firefighters are on the search for pockets of heat, digging out the heat source, and cooling with water. The infrared flight from last night indicated detectable heat remaining well interior of the containment lines in the open grass and also in the timber. Firefighters will continue to mop-up areas near the containment lines which have the potential to reignite and escape. A full suppression strategy is being utilized to minimize the impact to sage grouse habitat, private and federal grazing, and timber. A hand crew assigned to the Cemetery Fire assisted the Deschutes National Forest by responding to an initial attack of a new fire start yesterday. The fire was successfully contained. Planning for the transition of management of the Cemetery Fire is in progress. The proposed schedule is to turn management of the Cemetery Fire back to the local unit on Sunday at 6:00 am. Acres: 1,414 ...

Oregon State Parks Update:July 20, 2018 Campfires and open flames prohibited in Oregon State Parks SALEM, Ore. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) is prohibiting all campfires and open flames in all state park properties effective 10 a.m. today. The ban is in response to Gov. Brown’s declaration of a fire emergency. The campfire and open flame ban includes campgrounds, day-use areas, and all areas of the Ocean Shore and beaches managed by OPRD. The fire ban applies to wood, charcoal, and other flame sources that cannot be turned off with a valve. Liquid fuel stoves or cooking devices that can be turned off with a valve are permitted, but cannot be left unattended. Propane fire pits are allowed in coastal parks and restricted in other areas. MG Devereux, OPRD deputy director, says the ban is meant to avoid any accidental fires on OPRD property that would further tax limited firefighting resources. “We understand this is an inconvenience for campers, especially those who...

Reduced Evacuations, Some Containment Indicate Progress on Substation Fire MORO, OR – July 20, 2018 – Although gusty winds and uphill fire runs fanned the Substation Fire to 70,421 acres, crews made progress on Thursday, reaching 15% containment by the end of the day. Hand crews, air resources and heavy equipment continued working to mitigate the fire’s spread and reinforce containment lines, while engines and structural firefighters implemented point protection tactics to protect structures.Today, crews will continue to focus on minimizing risk to the community and protecting agricultural resources. Some crews will shift from firefighting to evaluation and assessment of fire damage to structures. It is anticipated that the total numbers of structure damage and loss will increase due to these efforts.“Feet and engines are on the ground, at the perimeter and to reach hot spots,” said Alex Haven, operations deputy chief for the Substation Fire. Winds have died down somewhat...

We're pleased to pass along this updated evacuation information: For communities of Moro, Grass Valley and Kent, the evacuation level has been downgraded to Level 2 - Set! The area east of Highway 97 has also been downgraded to Level 2. The area west of Highway 97 remains at Level 3 - Go! County Sheriff's team is reassessing conditions hourly, with the intent to restore access as soon as feasible. Many thanks to community members for your patience during this trying

The weather tonight will remain breezy with extremely low relative humid- ity. Fire behavior could be active on the ridge tops above 4,500 feet elevation beginning after midnight. The night shift fire crews were told to remain vigilant and stay safe while working on the fires. Tonight could be a challenge when the humidity remains low and winds do not die down. Almost 600 acres of growth today across the complex, the most active growth occurred on the Grave #3 Fire which moved steadily to the south. There was also some growth on the Pleasant Fire with some spot fires to the south, but fire managers were optimistic that they could control these spots during the night shift. Individual fire acreage updates will be posted when available. Evacuations remain at a level 2 for Pleasant Creek road between the addresses of 5047-7948. A level 3 went into place for the 7 houses at the farthest end of the road and residents were notified by the Jackson County Sherriff's office. ### ...

Today’s goal for all of the fires in the complex is to continue construction of fire lines around each fire and to catch the smaller ones with more per- sonnel and equipment. We continue to aggressively fight all fires in this complex. The fire team is expecting two large air tankers crossing over from Canada today. In addition, two Chinook helicopters are on order from the Oregon National Guard will be arriving tomorrow. Many of the fires are located in very steep and hard to access areas where helicopters are the most effective equipment. The use of helicopters in steep terrain minimizes the number of fire fighters needed, thus providing for their safety. Today’s weather will be similar to Wednesday. Morning inversions will be present, but should be below most fire locations. This means that north-northeast winds will be present at ridge tops in the morning. It will be hot and dry again today with winds shifting slightly to the north-northwest in the afternoon. Steve Ziel,...