Prineville, Ore. – Today, the Oregon Department of Forestry’s (ODF) Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) 2 was deployed to the Marks Creek Fire located 21 miles northeast of Prineville. This fire is burning on the Ochoco National Forest and is impacting ODF-protected lands. Combined with a lack of available regional complex incident management teams, ODF’s CIMT 2 was ordered to support the fire.
“Central and eastern Oregon have had a very active fire season so far,” said Brian Pew, Eastern Oregon Area Director. “ODF works with federal and local government partners daily to provide coordinated protection for Oregon’s forests.”
The Marks Creek Fire was reported yesterday and is currently estimated to be 2,000 acres. Crook County Sheriff’s Office has issued Level 3 (Go Now) and Level 2 (Be Set) evacuations. For more evacuation information, follow the Crook County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
Ground and air resources from ODF, Ochoco National Forest, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service and local fire departments have been actively engaged, and firefighters are working to establish control lines. Fire activity is expected to remain high over the next several days due to challenging weather conditions.
ODF CIMT 2 will in-brief today at 7 p.m. and will take command of the fire tomorrow at 6 p.m. after a day of shadowing with the current Type 3 team from Central Oregon Fire Management Service.
“Oregon’s complete and coordinated fire protection system is what makes our state so successful when it comes to wildfire,” said Michael Curran, ODF Fire Protection Division Chief. “We recognize that wildfire isn’t just one agency’s problem. Fire doesn’t respect jurisdictional boundaries, so it’s a problem and priority for every agency. We all share responsibility for protecting Oregonians, communities, and our natural resources.”
Fuels in Oregon remain extremely dry while warm and windy weather conditions persist. The best way Oregonians can support their local wildland firefighters is by practicing wildfire prevention and following local fire regulations. One less human-caused fire can make a difference and reduce strain on Oregon’s firefighting resources.