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Community Meetings Tonight: There will be Fire Information meetings in the communities of Cave Junction and Agness at 6:00 pm, Monday, August 20. The meeting in Cave Junction is at Illinois Valley High School, 625 E. River Street. The meeting in Agness is at the Angess Community Library, 3905 Cougar Lane. Fire personnel from the Klondike East and Klondike West fires will give an update on the fires and answer questions from the

Blue River, OR, August 19, 2018 – Firefighting resources, including engines and aircraft, from the Forest Service and Oregon Department of Forestry are responding to a new fire recently reported on the McKenzie River Ranger District, Willamette National Forest. The fire is estimated to be around 110 acres, approximately 4 miles south of Highway 126 on Aufderheide Scenic Highway, Forest Service Road 19, in the area of Terwilliger Hot Springs. Visitors are advised to avoid the area. Conditions are exceptionally dry causing the fire to grow quickly. “Forest conditions are very receptive to fire starts and growth right now,” said Darren Cross, District Ranger. “As a reminder, all campfires outside designated campgrounds within the Willamette National Forest are banned. Please remain vigilant with fire prevention efforts.” Smoke from this fire may be visible from the communities of McKenzie Bridge, Rainbow and portions of Highway 126. More information will be available soon. For...

Important message from Lake County Sheriff's Office - Level 3 Evacuations for Lakeview Estates, located just north of Campbell and Deadhorse Lakes in the Fremont-Winema National Forest. . Evacuations at this time are nearly complete! The fire is currently burning 1-2 miles north of the area. The Lake County Sheriff's Office appreciates everyone's cooperation for an orderly evacuation, and for staying out of the fire area for emergency personnel

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office has announced that the Bear Camp Road is open for access to the coast via Peavine Road.The section of Galice Creek Road between Peavine and Bear Camp will remain closed for firefighting operations.Be on the lookout for firefighters, equipment and debris on the roads when traveling through the

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office has announced that the Bear Camp Road is open for access to the coast via Peavine Road.The section of Galice Creek Road between Peavine and Bear Camp will remain closed for firefighting operations.Be on the lookout for firefighters, equipment and debris on the roads when traveling through the

Firefighters worked to suppress the Watson Creek Fire on Saturday, addressing the flames at several points with strategic burnouts that met and slowed the fire’s progression toward established fire lines. Helicopters continued to assist with water drops and will be available again today. Last night’s infrared flight over the fire shows it has grown to 16,227 acres. A public meeting will be held tonight at 7:00 p.m. in Paisley at the Community Center. Fire managers will offer a briefing on the condition of the landscape in the fire area, show maps, and share details of the ongoing firefighting strategy. On Saturday, the fire continued to consume vegetation at various hot spots within the fire line, generating smoke plumes where burning activity was greatest. A 10-acre spot outside the fire line at the junction of Forest Roads 28 and 3380 near the Hanan/Sycan Campground was quickly lined with a bulldozer and monitored overnight. In the evening, another spot onto Green Diamond...

8/19 Natchez Fire UpdateSize: 19,680 acresContainment: 65%Personnel: 721Weather: Continued hot, dry, and smoky due to a high pressure system east of the fire. The system is forecast to exit the area Monday and be replaced by an upper level low and southwesterly winds. Smoky conditions will impact air quality and reduce visibility throughout the day. Fire behavior will again be low due to poor ventilation. Northwest to northeast winds up to 7mph will gust to 15 mph late in the day. Higher gusts may occur where slope and winds align. Relative humidity will range from a morning high of 60% to the teens by the afternoon. Max temperatures are forecast to be 85 to 95 in the valleys and 80s on the ridges. Yesterday’s Activities: Stagnant weather conditions reduced fire behavior and led to limited fire growth. Low-intensity firing and mop up activities occurred from the South Fork Indian Creek to the southern tip of the fire. Unburned fuels between the creek and Forest Road 43 were...

While containment remained unchanged on the Miles and Columbus fires at 35 and 29 percent respectively, firefighters continue to make excellent progress. The Northern Rockies Incident Management Team (IMT) 2 is timing out on this assignment and is in the process of transitioning the fire to the Pacific Northwest IMT 2, led by Incident Commander Chris Schulte. Oregon Department of Forestry IMT 3 will continue to work in unified command with the incoming team. A heavy layer of smoke settled over the fire yesterday that slowed growth and delayed burnout operations for an additional day. The southern half of the Miles Fire is in full mop-up with some portions moving to patrol status. The fire remains most active in the Elkhorn Peak area, where the main fire is still some distance from established control lines. The north end of the fire continues to creep through green ground fuels on a path towards the Columbus Fire. The Miles Fire is now 33,204 acres and remains 35 percent contained....

Fire Zones Created The Taylor Creek and Klondike Fires were split into zones on Saturday. The fires are now referred to as “Taylor Creek and Klondike East Fires,” managed by the Alaska Incident Management Team out of Lake Selmac, and “Klondike West Fire” managed by California Interagency Incident Management Team 4 out of Gold Beach. Poor overnight relative humidity recoveries the past two nights have allowed fire to actively burn through the night into early morning. These conditions are forecast to continue through Sunday. Taylor Creek and Klondike East: Current Situation · Although extreme temperatures and low relative humidities prevailed on Saturday, forecasted wind gusts did not materialize during the day, resulting in continued burning but not extreme fire activity. Smoke remained and reduced fire activity predominated in much of the area. The most active part of the Klondike East Fire remains the southeast corner near Selma. Firefighters were able to conduct...

Fire Zones Created The Taylor Creek and Klondike Fires were split into zones on Saturday. The fires are now referred to as “Taylor Creek and Klondike East Fires,” managed by the Alaska Incident Management Team out of Lake Selmac, and “Klondike West Fire” managed by California Interagency Incident Management Team 4 out of Gold Beach. Poor overnight relative humidity recoveries the past two nights have allowed fire to actively burn through the night into early morning. These conditions are forecast to continue through Sunday. Taylor Creek and Klondike East: Current Situation · Although extreme temperatures and low relative humidities prevailed on Saturday, forecasted wind gusts did not materialize during the day, resulting in continued burning but not extreme fire activity. Smoke remained and reduced fire activity predominated in much of the area. The most active part of the Klondike East Fire remains the southeast corner near Selma. Firefighters were able to conduct...

The Watson Creek Fire burned actively through the day Friday in dense standing and downed vegetation dominated by bug killed lodgepole pine. Access to the fire is difficult, challenging fire fighters on their ability to directly attack the fire. Air resources supported the fire with water drops and will continue today, as smoke and visibility allow. An infrared camera was flown over the fire last night, allowing managers to more accurately map the fire size at 10,455 acres. Northwest Incident Management Team 6 assumed command of the fire on Friday evening and is setting up an Incident Command Post in Paisley. The Fremont-Winema National Forest has issued an emergency fire closure for several roads and recreation areas on the Forest. The Order is Number 06-02-03-18-02 and closes an area extending from near Picture rock south to Forest Roads 33 and 28, and from the eastern boundary of the Forest west to the eastern edge of the Gearhart Mountain Wilderness and the Forest boundary...

Critical fire weather last night resulted in an increase in acreage of both the Taylor Creek and Klondike Fires. Low relative humidities overnight allowed the fires to burn very actively. High temperatures and winds out of the northeast gusting to 25 mph will continue today. California Interagency Incident Management Team 4 (CIIMT) has assumed command of the western edge of the Taylor Creek and Klondike fires and have established an Incident Command Post (ICP) in Gold Beach. CIIMT4 was called in to continue with the aggressive fight to fully suppress the fire. This will allow the Alaska Incident Management Team to focus their effort on controlling the southeast corner of the fire that is directly threatening the communities of Selma and Cave Junction. East · Fire crews are repairing effects of fire suppression along the northern and eastern boundaries of the Taylor Creek Fire. They continue to patrol and improve firelines along the eastern boundary. The southeast corner of...

Critical fire weather last night resulted in an increase in acreage of both the Taylor Creek and Klondike Fires. Low relative humidities overnight allowed the fires to burn very actively. High temperatures and winds out of the northeast gusting to 25 mph will continue today. California Interagency Incident Management Team 4 (CIIMT) has assumed command of the western edge of the Taylor Creek and Klondike fires and have established an Incident Command Post (ICP) in Gold Beach. CIIMT4 was called in to continue with the aggressive fight to fully suppress the fire. This will allow the Alaska Incident Management Team to focus their effort on controlling the southeast corner of the fire that is directly threatening the communities of Selma and Cave Junction. East · Fire crews are repairing effects of fire suppression along the northern and eastern boundaries of the Taylor Creek Fire. They continue to patrol and improve firelines along the eastern boundary. The southeast corner of...

In coordination with fire officials, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office reduced evacuation levels in the vicinity of the Miles Fire. As of 6:00 p.m. Friday, August 17, all areas of the Miles Fire previously under level 3 evacuation were reduced to level 2 (Be Set). Jackson and Josephine county residents can visit https://bit.ly/2uUku2C for more information on current evacuation levels. Douglas County residents that have been under evacuation orders are now under level 1 (Get Ready). Although fire suppression efforts are progressing well, fire managers say that fire intensity remains active within the perimeter. Without a break in the weather in the foreseeable future, firefighters continue to stay ahead of the fire front through methodical burnout operations, nursing it to established control lines. Warmer temperatures and light winds led to increased fire activity on the northwest and northeast portions of the Miles Fire. The wind also worked in the firefighters favor,...

Weather: Continued hot, dry, and sunny due to a high pressure system slowly drifting over the fire. This is leading to dense ground-level smoke this morning with only slightly improving air quality conditions as the atmosphere heats up later in the day. The high pressure overhead is forecast to keep a cap on the fire and continue to minimize fire behavior, but smoky conditions will prevail. Calm morning winds in the valleys will shift out of the west to northwest in the afternoon with forecasted winds 5 to 8 mph. Poor humidity recovery on the ridges last night will lead to daytime relative humidity in the twenties to teens. Max temperatures: 90s in the valleys and 80s on the ridges. Yesterday’s Activities: Weather conditions prevented the fire from ventilating and kept fire behavior low. Smoke reduced visibility on the southeastern portion of the fire, preventing aircraft from assisting ground crews. Firefighters completed low-intensity burning on this portion of the fire...

PAISLEY, Ore. – The Watson Creek Fire remained active overnight and throughout the day, growing to approximately 8,500 acres. Fire crews continue to struggle with difficult terrain, access, and the dense accumulation of standing dead and downed material on the ground. The fire was reported Wednesday afternoon approximately 15 miles west of Paisley and is currently burning on the Fremont-Winema National Forest Paisley Ranger District. Firefighter safety remains an issue due to numerous hazard trees and standing snags. Low visibility in the area remains a concern for firefighting aircraft working the fire. Breezy northwest winds may affect the spread of the fire, possibly causing the fire spread to shift to the east and southeast. No thunderstorms are predicted in the area today. Resources assigned to the fire include two fixed wing Air Attack platforms, four helicopters, 14 engines, 8 water tenders, 4 dozers, four 20-person crews, two faller modules, and approximately 100...

With the smoke inversion expected to lift over the Taylor Creek and Klondike fires today, there is potential for increased fire activity. This is likely to produce large smoke columns visible from the communities of Selma, Grants Pass, Merlin and Cave Junction until Sunday afternoon. Winds out of the northeast are forecast to increase today with gusts of 20-25 mph. The wind is expected to push smoke out of the area. For the past several days, the smoke has smothered the fires and moderated fire activity. Today’s clearer air will breathe life into the fire and increase fire behavior. However, the northeast winds should push the fire to the southwest, into the burn scar of last year’s Chetco Bar Fire and away from communities. Fire managers are aware and prepared for the change in the weather and increased fire behavior. More crews are being staged in the southeast part of the Klondike Fire. The smoke dispersion may allow aircraft to support firefighters working on the ground. If...

With the smoke inversion expected to lift over the Taylor Creek and Klondike fires today, there is potential for increased fire activity. This is likely to produce large smoke columns visible from the communities of Selma, Grants Pass, Merlin and Cave Junction until Sunday afternoon.Winds out of the northeast are forecast to increase today with gusts of 20-25 mph. The wind is expected to push smoke out of the area. For the past several days, the smoke has smothered the fires and moderated fire activity. Today’s clearer air will breathe life into the fire and increase fire behavior. However, the northeast winds should push the fire to the southwest, into the burn scar of last year’s Chetco Bar Fire and away from communities. Fire managers are aware and prepared for the change in the weather and increased fire behavior. More crews are being staged in the southeast part of the Klondike Fire. The smoke dispersion may allow aircraft to support firefighters working on the ground. If you...