ODF has dispatched one engine from the Central Oregon District to assist the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs with battling a rapidly growing wildfire that broke out Thursday afternoon prior to 2pm near the Upper Dry Creek area of the Warm Springs reservation. Interagency resources from across central Oregon, including a team of Prineville Hotshots, are being mobilized to assist on the fire, which by 5 pm was estimated to be roughly 300 acres in size. ODF is assisting the fire in a resource capacity. Fire management is under the direction of the CTWS.
Caution is urged in the vicinity of US Highway 26 near Warm Springs as the Oregon Department of Transportation may be closing the highway for brief intervals during Thursday night to allow crews to set backfires in an effort to stop the advance of the fire. ODOT is urging motorists to avoid the area.
Highway 3, the primary access road to the Kah-Nee-Tah area, is closed due to the fire. The Oregon Mountain River Chapter of the American Red Cross has been mobilized to provide emergency assistance to those persons affected by the fire.
Kevin Weeks
Oregon Department of Forestry