SISTERS, Ore. (August 23, 2025) — Despite hot, dry and gusty conditions, fire crews continue to battle the 18,000-acre Flat Fire. Firefighters continue to face critical weather, steep terrain and shifting conditions. Ground crews continue to work closely with air resources in an attempt to slow the fire’s forward progress, with a focus on protecting threatened structures.
“Our firefighters are working under critical weather conditions and some very challenging terrain. We’re going to continue the aggressive firefighting that local resources and partners started,” said Aaron Whiteley Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) 3 Incident Commander.
Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM) structural task forces continued providing point protection to properties and critical infrastructure threatened by the fire. Due to increased fire activity, OSFM crews focused efforts on structures impacted by the threat of the fire. This work includes active suppressing of fire around homes, creating a perimeter around homes, extinguishing hot spots around structures, controlling hot spots, and monitoring for embers.
“Public and firefighter safety are our primary concern,” said, Ian Yocum, Department of State Fire Marshal Red Team Incident Commander. “We’ll be in this firefight until structures are no longer in harm’s way.”
Additional personnel and resources continue to arrive and join day and night operational shifts and increase capacity. All agencies continue to work closely with partner agencies to protect lives, property, and communities.
These resources included two strike teams comprised of Type I engines. These large engines help bolster structural protection and allow more mobile resources to expand their efforts. Eight OSFM task forces will work tonight, ensuring protection remains in place around the clock.
ODF CIMT 3 assumed command of the Flat Fire from Central Oregon IMT 3 and unified with OSFM Incident Management Red Team at 6:00 p.m. this evening. To help fire operations and firefighter safety, The Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service ask that people stay out of the fire area.
As a reminder, drone use near fires is both illegal and extremely dangerous to pilots working on incidents. If you fly, we can’t. FAA Temporary Flight Restrictions are in place for the fire area. All illegal drone use will be reported to law enforcement.
Level 1, 2 and 3 evacuations remain in effect under the direction of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. Follow their Facebook pages for the latest information and updates.
A Temporary Evacuation Point has been setup at Highland Baptist Church located at: 3100 SW Highland Ave, Redmond, OR. Jefferson County Fairgrounds is available for large animals.
The Flat Fire started the afternoon of Thursday, August 21. A conflagration was declared on August 22, 2025. The Flat Fire includes public and private lands of the Oregon Department of Forestry, Bureau of Land Management, Ochoco National Forest, and Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.