JACKSON & JOSEPHINE COUNTIES, Ore. (July 10, 2025)—Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) Complex Incident Management Team 3 assumed command of the Grizzly Complex this morning, and the Neil Creek Road Fire that is not part of the complex. ODF Southwest Oregon District continues suppression efforts on additional fires started by lightning on Monday.
At this time, more than 1,300 personnel are assigned to the fires, with many more on the way. These additional crews and resources continue to arrive to provide relief to existing local district personnel, allowing them to continue work on other fires within the district and be ready to respond to potential new fire starts.
Significant progress was made on numerous fires managed by both district personnel and ODF Team 3 with continued aggressive, direct suppression efforts. “Increased temperatures, windy conditions and rugged terrain challenged crews today, but it was a successful day of safe firefighting,” said ODF Team 3 Incident Commander Tyler McCarty.
Today, the following fires remain the largest incidents across the district:
- The Neil Creek Road Fire, located west of I-5 mile marker 10 and south of Ashland. Today, crews completed dozer line on the south end of the fire and continued to build direct lines elsewhere around the fire’s perimeter. Crews continued mop-up operations along the north end of the fire. The fire remains estimated at 250 acres. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management are maintaining evacuation notices for Zones JAC-536, JAC-542, JAC-543, JAC-546, JAC-558 and JAC-559 under a Level 2 – Be Set. More information on current evacuations can be found at: https://protect.genasys.com/. One lane of I-5 is closed between mile markers 8.5 and 10.5 on southbound lanes only. Check tripcheck.com for up-to-date traffic information.
- The Deming Gulch Fire, located northeast of Buncom, is currently estimated at 250 acres. Firefighters continued additional line construction along the west flank and will begin adding hose lays through night shift tonight. There are currently no evacuation notices on this incident.
- The Heppsie Mountain Fire, located south of Highway 140. Firefighters completed 65% of the line around the the Heppsie Mountain Fire today, and began mop up that will continue into the night, it’s still estimated to be 40 acres in size. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management have issued a Level 1 – BE READY for a possible evacuation from the following areas: JAC-325-B Heppsie Mountain Road south of Highway 140 and the zone immediately to the south, JAC-326. More information on current evacuations can be found here: https://protect.genasys.com/.
- The Poole Hill Fire, located south of the Heppsie Mountain Fire. Firefighters continue mop up operations while maintaining lines, keeping the fire at a final size of 11.5 acres. Evacuation notifications for the Heppsie Mountain Fire apply to this incident as well.
- The North Fork Deer Creek Fire, located in the hills above the 8000-block of Deer Creek Road east of Selma. Crews continue mop up operations, holding it at 42 acres. There are no current evacuation orders for this incident.
- The Jim Me Peak Fire, located in a remote area south of Applegate. The fire remained very active today, but firefighters continue to remain heavily engaged in an aggressive attack as hot, windy conditions persist into the evening.
- The Palmer Peak Fire, located to the southeast of the Jim Me Peak Fire. Today, firefighters completed line around the fire, and mop up operations have begun. The fire is currently estimated to be 90 acres.
- The Holcomb Peak Fire, located southwest of Williams. Today, firefighters worked to hold line around the fire and build more. Hot and windy conditions challenged crews, but resources will remain engaged overnight.
Aircraft were used heavily all day, contributing to success across all fires in the district. As a reminder, drone use around fires is illegal, and incredibly dangerous to pilots working on incidents; if you fly, we can’t. All illegal drone use will be reported to law enforcement.
Most of these fires were caused by lightning strikes following thunderstorms Monday night. The fire count remains at 72 total between the two counties, with numerous fires already caught and extinguished at small sizes.
Other small fires are still staffed across the district. Due to the large number of fires, updates on smaller incidents are not being provided at this time; if conditions change and there are any threats to homes, communities or roads, information will be provided as timely and accurately as possible.
High fire danger is currently in effect on ODF-protected land in Jackson and Josephine counties; as firefighters work to extinguish these natural fire starts, help prevent new human-caused fires from sparking by following all regulations currently in place: https://swofire.com/public-fire-restrictions/.
For fire local information anytime, visit the district’s Facebook page, @ODFSouthwest or website, www.swofire.com.