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Incident Summary:  Firefighting operations continue across all areas of the complex by applying a full suppression strategy. A dry warming trend continues to move over the fire area similar to yesterday with fire activity expected to pick up slightly earlier in the day. Modest to poor humidity recoveries are expected on the upper ridges with winds from the southeast and west. These elevated weather concerns will bring an increase in fire behavior but will also provide optimal burning conditions for continued controlled firing operations. Firing operations are expected to continue along the northeast side of the fires. These actions will create additional reinforcement to the north and east side of the fire, providing the greatest defense for the expected south winds on Friday prior to moisture moving into the area.   Chaos and Little Bend Fires:  The Chaos Fire is 26,284 acres and the Little Bend Creek Fire is 9,087 acres. Crews will continue conducting firing...

Incident Summary:  Firefighting operations continue across all areas of the complex by applying a full suppression strategy. A dry warming trend continues to move over the fire area similar to yesterday with fire activity expected to pick up slightly earlier in the day. Modest to poor humidity recoveries are expected on the upper ridges with winds from the southeast and west. These elevated weather concerns will bring an increase in fire behavior but will also provide optimal burning conditions for continued controlled firing operations. Firing operations are expected to continue along the northeast side of the fires. These actions will create additional reinforcement to the north and east side of the fire, providing the greatest defense for the expected south winds on Friday prior to moisture moving into the area.   Chaos and Little Bend Fires:  The Chaos Fire is 26,284 acres and the Little Bend Creek Fire is 9,087 acres. Crews will continue conducting firing...

Devil’s Knob Complex Update Thursday, September 16, 2021 – 9:00 a.m. Rocky Mountain Type 1 Incident Management Team Dan Dallas, Incident Commander Information phone: 541-900-6133 Email:2021.DevilsKnob@firenet.gov  Information staffing hours: 8:00 am – 8:00 pm Current Situation: Wednesday’s favorable weather conditions and decreased fire behavior allowed firefighters to work directly on the fire perimeter as they completed fireline in several locations. This work advanced containment across the Smith Fire to 28% and Big Hamlin Fire to 89%. Heavy equipment connected the indirect line in Division A along Forest Road 27 to the Jack Fire. Across all divisions, work included firefighting resources constructing fireline, continuing to secure values at risk, patrolling, mopping up, extinguishing spot fires, and executing suppression repair. Today, firefighters will build on yesterday’s successes working on further extension of firelines along the...

  Burns, OR – Northwest Incident Management Team 7 assumed command of the Big Meadow Fire yesterday evening at 7:00 p.m. The Big Meadow Fire started on September 9th, 2021. The fire started from a late season lightning storm in the Dry Mountain area north of Riley, Oregon. The fire is burning in steep rocky terrain with limited firefighter access. Control objectives are to keep the south of Upper Valley Road, west of Egypt Well, north of Big Ridge and east of private property and the land protected by the Silver Creek Rangeland Fire Protection Association and Oregon Department of Forestry. Today, firefighters will continue with reinforcing the fire perimeter that was constructed by the Type 3 Team. Operations will look to secure lines ahead of the forecasted dry front and associated winds. Crews will also work to bring water to the fireline as some areas can’t be accessed by engines due to the rocky terrain. This will mean hiking hoses into the fire footprint. Crews will...

   Middle Fork Complex Daily Update – September 15, 2021 Northwest Incident Management Team 6 Shawn Sheldon, Incident Commander   Phone: 425-324-1267 (8am-8pm) Email: 2021.middlefork@firenet.gov InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7745   Facebook: facebook.com/MiddleForkComplex Twitter: twitter.com/willametteNF   Size: 29,267                                             Origin/Location: North of Oakridge, OR Contained: 30%                                       Date/Time Detected: July 29, 2021, 2:00 p.m. Number of Personnel: 714                     Cause: Lightning          Westfir, OR – Fire activity picked up yesterday with the warmer and drier weather, but fire movement and spread was minimal. Firefighters took advantage of favorable weather conditions to resume strategic firing of unburned fuel inside the fireline in Division P and...

     Green Ridge Fire Update Wednesday September 15, 2021 Fire Information Line: (509) 542-7964 Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/Email: 2021.GreenRidge@firenet.govFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/greenridgefire2021   Green Ridge Fire is being managed by the Southern Area Gray Incident Management Team with Mitch Ketron as the incident commander. The Gray Team took command of the Green Ridge Fire on September 4, 2021 at 0600.Green Ridge Fire: Size: 43,332 acres, Containment: 40%, Total Personnel: 153, Location: 30 miles east of Walla Walla, Reported: July 7, 2021, Cause: Lightning. Please, stay clear of firefighting operations and drive safely! The public should watch out for fire crews and equipment while traveling on forest roads. Some roads remain closed with barriers. Barriers are in place to protect firefighters and the public, so please respect the closed areas. Stay clear of fire-blackened areas for the many unseen hazards that exist, including...

Smoke Outlook for 9/15 - 9/16 Middle Fork Complex Fire  Special Statement The latest Air Quality Alerts and Advisories issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will be posted on the "Oregon Smoke Blog". Note that this Outlook is based on the 24-hour AQI, for current conditions go to "EPA's Airnow Fire and Smoke Map". Fire and Weather A dry cold front moved through yesterday, so we have cooler, slightly moister conditions for today. Fuels continue to creep and smolder, but no large growth is expected. We have wet weather headed our way starting Friday. It's looking like as much as 0.5" of rain could fall on the fire, possibly more. Stay tuned! Smoke Air quality should be 'Good' to 'Moderate' today for most of the Outlook area. Northwest wind is putting some smoke into Bend and La Pine. La Pine is starting off the day in 'Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups' (USG) conditions; it should clear a bit by the evening. Bend will likely see periods of USG thru the afternoon....

 Cougar Peak Fire Update Northwest Incident Management Team 8, Incident Commander Kevin Stock September 15, 2021   Beginning today, one fire update will be provided per day in the morning. Facebook and Inciweb will continue to be updated all day and through the evening. Lakeview Ore. – The Office of the Oregon State Fire Marshal Incident Management Team (OSFM) and task forces will be traveling back to their home agencies today. OSFM would like to thank all of the local agencies and firefighters for the hard work during the initial attack and the ongoing support during the incident. Undoubtedly, the quick and heroic actions of firefighters and local law enforcement saved many lives and protected many homes in the path of the Cougar Peak Fire. During the three deployments that brought OSFM to Lake County this year, the community has been welcoming and the Teams thank them for their hospitality. OSFM is grateful to Northwest Incident Management Team 8 for the partnership and...

Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7773/Email: 2021.bull@firenet.govPhone: 971-277-5075Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mthoodnfhttps://www.facebook.com/willamettenfTwitter: https://twitter.com/mthoodnfhttps://twitter.com/willamettenfCause: Lightning                   Size:  21,191 acres             Containment: 14%                Personnel: 492Incident Command: Type 2 Northern Rockies Incident Management Team 4, Rick Connell, Incident CommanderCurrent Status:  The fire continued to be active yesterday in the Upper Dickey Creek, Mother Lode Creek, and Battle drainages due to warm and dry conditions. An afternoon flight observed intense ground fire and some group tree torching. Due to wind conditions at the water dip locations, helicopters were not able to be used for bucket drops. Equipment and crews prepared primary and contingency lines on road systems and hand lines north and northwest of the fire as part of the...

Special Statement Oregon DEQ has issued an air quality advisory for southern Lake County, Detroit Lake area and Diamond Lake area through Friday OR DEQ AQ Advisory Fire and Weather: Today will be slightly cooler and more humid than yesterday which should result in slower fire growth. Firefighters are strengthening new containment lines and continue to monitor existing containment areas. The Rough Patch Fire is 47,215 acres. The Devils Knob Complex is 66,584 acres. Both are 35 - 40% contained.Smoke: Winds will be coming out of the north in the morning shifting to the northwest which will carry smoke from the fires to the south and southeast. Communities close to the fires will continue to experience periods of degraded air quality, especially overnight. Tonight, smoke may be trapped closer to the ground by a shallow inversion, but it should lift tomorrow by about noon. Communities along the I-5 corridor between Roseburg and Medford should have Good air quality today and tomorrow....

Special Statement Oregon DEQ has issued an air quality advisory for southern Lake County, Detroit Lake area and Diamond Lake area through Friday. OR DEQ AQ Advisory Fire and Weather: Today will be slightly cooler and more humid than yesterday which should result in slower fire growth. Firefighters are strengthening new containment lines and continue to monitor existing containment areas. The Rough Patch Fire is 47,215 acres. The Devils Knob Complex is 66,584 acres. Both are 35 -40% contained. Smoke: Winds will be coming out of the north in the morning shifting to the northwest which will carry smoke from the fires to the south and southeast. Communities close to the fires will continue to experience periods of degraded air quality, especially overnight. Tonight, smoke may be trapped closer to the ground by a shallow inversion, but it should lift tomorrow by about noon. Communities along the I-5 corridor between Roseburg and Medford should have Good air quality today and tomorrow....

Incident Summary:  Yesterday’s warm and dry air resulted in increased fire activity; however, there was limited uncontrolled fire growth on the Complex.  Fire personnel took advantage of favorable conditions to successfully conduct controlled firing operations on the northeast side of the fire area. These operations removed unburnt fuel in challenging sections of the Chaos and Little Bend fires. This work will significantly increase the probability of securing these areas in the coming days. Firefighters and support crews in all areas of the Complex will continue working to contain fires utilizing a full suppression strategy.  Chaos and Little Bend Fires:   The Chaos Fire is 26284 acres, and the Little Bend Creek Fire is 9087 acres. The northern tip of the Chaos fire that crossed the 2460 road near Fairfield Peak did not show significant heat or smoke today.  Crews conducted firing operations and connected the fireline between the 3829 road and...

Wednesday, September 15, 2021 – 9:00 a.m. Rocky Mountain Type 1 Incident Management Team Dan Dallas, Incident Commander Information phone: 541-900-6133 Email:2021.DevilsKnob@firenet.gov  Information staffing hours: 8:00 am – 8:00 pm Current Situation: Yesterday, limited fire behavior allowed resources to continue work directly on the fire perimeter. Heavy equipment made advances closing the gap to complete indirect line in Division A. Crews and engines worked in Division H of the Big Hamlin Fire to extinguish any remaining heat and check for spot fires from burnout operations of several days ago. Similar “search and destroy” heat missions were carried out across other divisions and around other values at risk to ensure perimeters remained secure. Several hand crews were moved from Branch I to Branch II to establish area awareness and plan firing operations should they be needed in the days ahead. Aviation supplied important assistance to firefighters...

Incident Summary:  Yesterday’s warm and dry air resulted in increased fire activity; however, there was limited uncontrolled fire growth on the Complex.  Fire personnel took advantage of favorable conditions to successfully conduct controlled firing operations on the northeast side of the fire area. These operations removed unburnt fuel in challenging sections of the Chaos and Little Bend fires. This work will significantly increase the probability of securing these areas in the coming days. Firefighters and support crews in all areas of the Complex will continue working to contain fires utilizing a full suppression strategy.  Chaos and Little Bend Fires:  The Chaos Fire is 26284 acres, and the Little Bend Creek Fire is 9087 acres. The northern tip of the Chaos fire that crossed the 2460 road near Fairfield Peak did not show significant heat or smoke today.  Crews conducted firing operations and connected the fireline between the 3829 road and 2640 roads.  Firefighters...

  Cougar Peak Fire Update Northwest Incident Management Team 8, Incident Commander Kevin Stock Oregon State Fire Marshal Incident Management Blue Team, Incident Commander Scott Magers September 14, 2021 – Evening   Lakeview Ore. – Today’s planned tactical burnout on the southwest side of the Cougar Peak Fire was successful. The Prineville Hotshot crew incrementally burned out approximately 3 miles of line, starting south of Cox Flat and working north. The intent of the burnout was to reduce fuels between the active fire’s edge and the line. These actions have helped secure the southwest section of the fire. Throughout the day and tonight, resources will continue to actively mop-up and patrol the burnout area. Air resources were available all day to support firefighters on the ground. Helicopters stayed busy with bucket drops, helping ground resources extinguish flare ups, hotspots and spots along the fire edge. As well as supporting burnout operations with pretreating the...

   Green Ridge Fire Update Tuesday September 14, 2021 Fire Information Line: (509) 542-7964 Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/Email: 2021.GreenRidge@firenet.govFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/greenridgefire2021    Green Ridge Fire is being managed by the Southern Area Gray Incident Management Team with Mitch Ketron as the incident commander. The Gray Team took command of the Green Ridge Fire on September 4, 2021 at 0600.Green Ridge Fire: Size: 43,238 acres, Containment: 40%, Total Personnel: 161, Location: 30 miles east of Walla Walla, Reported: July 7, 2021, Cause: Lightning. Please, stay clear of firefighting operations and drive safely! The public should watch out for fire crews and equipment while traveling on forest roads. Some roads remain closed with barriers. Barriers are in place to protect firefighters and the public, so please respect the closed areas. Stay clear of fire-blackened areas for the many unseen hazards that exist, including live...

Middle Fork Complex Daily Update – September 14, 2021 Northwest Incident Management Team 6 Shawn Sheldon, Incident Commander Phone: 425-324-1267 (8am-8pm) Email: 2021.middlefork@firenet.govInciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7745  Facebook: facebook.com/MiddleForkComplexTwitter: twitter.com/willametteNFSize: 29,180       Contained: 28%    Number of Personnel: 714 Origin/Location: North of Oakridge, OR Date/Time Detected: July 29, 2021, 2:00 p.m. Cause: Lightning Westfir, OR – The Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) was utilized yesterday to strategically fire an area of unburned fuel inside our constructed fireline. Our plan is to continue this operation  today to mitigate burnable material should we experience a significant wind event that would challenge our fireline.  There is another unburned island on the northeast side of the fire that we are planning to strategically fire as well, depending on fuel moistures. The handline that was being constructed to the south...

Smoke Outlook for 9/14 - 9/15Middle Fork Complex   Special Statement The latest Air Quality Alerts and Advisories issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will be posted on the "Oregon Smoke Blog". Note that this Outlook is based on the 24-hour AQI, for current conditions go to "EPA's Airnow Fire and Smoke Map". Fire and Weather Fire could be a bit more active today. We will have drier, warmer, and breezier conditions than we've had the past few days. Fuels continue to creep and smolder, so an uptick in burning is still possible with the right conditions. We have wet weather headed our way the end of the week. Smoke Air quality should be 'Good' today in most of the Outlook area. Areas closest to the fire, will likely see periods of smoke this afternoon, particularly if there is an uptick in fire behavior. So, stay alert to changing conditions. Smoke from other large fires in Oregon and California should stay to our south. All in all, it should be a good day for...

  Cougar Peak Fire Update Northwest Incident Management Team 8, Incident Commander Kevin Stock Oregon State Fire Marshal Incident Management Blue Team, Incident Commander Scott Magers September 14, 2021 – Morning   Lakeview Ore. – The Cougar Peak Fire is estimated at 86,412 acres and 6% contained. Excellent progress is being made to secure perimeter lines and cool hot spots. Firefighters have also scouted and created miles of direct and indirect line while mopping up areas that threaten the existing containment lines. With the improvement in visibility, all aviation assets assigned to the fire were very active yesterday. A heavy equipment group continues to make progress around the fire assisting with line construction. A weak cold front has brought lower humidity to the region will accelerate the drying of fuels and increase fire activity. Last night, crews patrolled the fire and worked hotspots found along the fires edge. Today’s priority will again concentrate on the...

Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7773/Email: 2021.bull@firenet.govPhone: 971-277-5075Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mthoodnfhttps://www.facebook.com/willamettenfTwitter: https://twitter.com/mthoodnfhttps://twitter.com/willamettenfCause: Lightning                   Size:  19,950 acres             Containment: 14%                Personnel: 594Incident Command: Type 2 Northern Rockies Incident Management Team 4, Rick Connell, Incident CommanderCurrent Status: Yesterday, the fire continued to be moderately active in the Upper Dickey Creek, Mother Lode Creek, and Battle drainages. Helicopter bucket water drops were used to slow fire spread in these areas on the northwest corner of the fire. On the south side the fire slowly backed downslope in the Elk Lake Creek and East Humbug Creek drainages. Firefighters monitored the fire movement and tested the tanks, pumps, and hose lines which are set up on the primary line as well as...