ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – Aug. 1, 2024

August 1, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 2 is in command of the Winding Water Complex west of Wallowa (Northeast Oregon District). Updates available on the District’s Facebook page.
• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 12,899 personnel assigned to the 39 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

ODF Highlight: When hundreds of firefighters need showers, meals, equipment or anything else for an incident, the ODF Fire Cache is there. The fire cache stores everything from paperclips to kitchen trailers to sleeping bags and is ready to send out resources at any time. The team works year-round to rehab, restock, organize, and build supplies, and is dedicated to making sure ODF is prepared for anything.

Weather
Hot and dry conditions remain in place heading into the weekend. Low level instability and potential for pyrocumulus increase for the next few days on existing incidents. The thermal trough over western Oregon will shift toward the Cascade crest each day and bring additional convective smoke column concerns. There is below average confidence for thunderstorms over southern Oregon Friday afternoon and/or Friday night, but any storms will be dry. Saturday through Sunday will bring much better confidence for thunderstorms, including Saturday night. The focus is on southern and eastern Oregon Saturday with the threat moving northward to Washington on Sunday. Storms are most likely to start dry but quickly moisten as the activity moves north all while frequent lightning potential increases. Storms potentially continue into next week.

Prevention
With the weather warming back up, stay aware and be fire smart as we move into the weekend. So far this year, more than 80% of the fires ODF has responded to were caused by people. While many of those were likely unintentional, it doesn’t make them any less destructive. Know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 31, 2024

July 31, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 2 is in command of the Winding Water Complex west of Wallowa (Northeast Oregon District). Updates available on the District’s Facebook page.
• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 9,805 personnel assigned to the 39 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

ODF Highlight:
When Oregon was in need, our partners came to help. After the second lightning event in mid-July, resources in the area were tapped out, but incident management teams were still needed. To help alleviate the strain and add capacity, North Carolina and Florida sent enough firefighters to Oregon to create a combined incident management team. That complex incident management team is currently assigned to and managing the Cottage Grove Complex.

With the help of this team, ODF had the opportunity to give a much-needed rest period to our Incident Management Team 2 before they were sent back out to the Winding Water Complex.

The Cottage Grove Complex is comprised of two fires, Lane 1 and Adam Mountain. It is currently 12,109 acres and seven percent contained.

Thank you, North Carolina and Florida!

Weather
High pressure, hot temperatures, low humidity, and poor humidity recovery (mainly eastside) return beginning today through the weekend. Low level instability and mixing heights increase as temperatures warm. A thermal trough over western Oregon will shift from the coast in the morning toward the Cascade crest each day. This triggers an afternoon wind shift from easterly to westerly plus brief increased mixing heights. There is low confidence of elevated thunderstorms returning late Friday night. Saturday and Sunday bring much better confidence for a return of thunderstorms. Southern Oregon looks to hold the best promise for Saturday with the threat moving northward Sunday.  Storms are most likely to start dry but quickly moisten while frequent lightning potential increases. Storms potentially continue early next week while conditions remain hot, dry, and unstable.

Prevention
Know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 30, 2024

July 30, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 2 is in command of the Winding Water Complex west of Wallowa (Northeast Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 9,971 personnel assigned to the 36 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

District Highlight: After the last lightning bust sparked multiple fires in the Northeast Oregon District,  the La Grande Unit successfully caught four fires and kept them all less than 2 acres. The success is with the

help of the local Wallowa Whitman National Forest-La Grande Ranger District, North Powder Rural Fire Department, the La Grande Rural Fire Protection District, and local landowners.

The unit would like to thank all the local landowners and recreationists who are reporting new starts and providing intel to engage resources. This is essential to the coordinated system to keep fires small and controlled.

Cody Rickert, ODF Forest Officer from La Grande, said, “The unit is spread thinner than usual, as all units are with the amount of fire on our footprint, but with the people mentioned above, we are still in a good place to catch small fires. I would ask that the public be careful of where they are driving and parking and diligent in making sure that we don’t worsen a hazardous situation by complacency.”

Weather
The geographic area remains under mild conditions today. Breezy and locally windy conditions today but with higher humidity mainly through the Cascade gaps. Portions of south-central and southeast Oregon will be breezy as well. High pressure, hot temperatures, and low humidity return later this week lasting through the weekend. A weak thermal trough develops across western Oregon Thursday and will shift from closer to the coast in the morning toward the Cascade crest each afternoon. The main concern will be for brief periods of enhanced ventilation during the afternoon and early evening hours. Saturday and Sunday bring a return of thunderstorms, however specific location details remain elusive. Storms are most likely to remain on the drier side.

Prevention
Know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 29, 2024

July 29, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.
• Team 2 will take command of the Winding Water Complex at 0600 tomorrow morning, July 30.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 9,580 personnel assigned to the 43 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

ODF Highlight: Oregon Department of Forestry orders resources from the Oregon National Guard

The Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) has ordered four hand crews through the Oregon National Guard (ORNG) in support of multijurisdictional fires. Through Governor Kotek’s State of Emergency Declaration, ODF is able to order firefighting resources as needed from the National Guard. Since the declaration, the department has already ordered two medevac helicopters and other air support from the National Guard.

“The wildfire situation on the ground is dynamic and challenging, and we need all hands on deck,” Governor Kotek said. “I want to thank the Oregon National Guard for their dedication and cooperation in fighting Oregon’s wildfires and protecting Oregon’s communities and natural resources.”

The four hand crews are comprised of 92 personnel: 22 firefighters per crew, two liaisons and two support personnel. Two of the crews will be staffed by Air Guard members and two will be staffed with Army Guard members.

ODF’s Deputy Director of Fire Operations Kyle Williams said, “This year’s extreme weather has tested our limits, but our unwavering commitment to protecting Oregon’s communities and natural resources remains. We are leveraging every resource available to fight the wildfires, including our partners at the Oregon National Guard.”

These service members will go through the administrative process to bring them on State Active Duty (SAD) orders on Wednesday, July 31 and Thursday, August 1 and will then be assigned out to a fire through ODF from there. Their assignment will last 14 days in support of the U.S. Forest Service on multijurisdictional fires.

The Oregon Department of Forestry continues to tap into every outlet available through the Oregon National Guard, our in-state partners, landowners, state-to-state mutual aid agreements and the NW Compact to mobilize more firefighters and resources.

Weather
A cold front crosses the geographic area today. Rain continues primarily for northwest Oregon and western Washington along with breezy winds and spotty rain east of the Cascades. Central and some eastern PSAs can expect breezy to locally windy conditions today and Tuesday but accompanied with higher humidity. High pressure, warming, and drying returns later this week lasting through the weekend. A weak thermal trough develops across western Oregon Thursday. It will be centered closer to the coast at night then drift toward the Cascade crest each afternoon through at least Saturday. Expect light east flow overnight/morning then a brief period of deeper mixing followed by west to northwest flow in the afternoons and evenings. Moisture may wrap northward around the high for possible thunderstorms Saturday and Sunday. Stay tuned as details evolve.

Prevention

As firefighters take advantage of more favorable weather conditions, make sure you’re not adding another fire to their tasks. Keep up on your fire prevention and learn more at www.keeporegongreen.org.

Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 28, 2024

July 28, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.
• Team 2 is currently on rotation.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 9,663 personnel assigned to the 45 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

ODF Highlight: Oregon is Hawaii’s first deployment under the NW Compact
This past April, Hawaii became the eleventh member of the Northwest Wildland Fire Protection Agreement (NW Compact). On July 26, Oregon received Michael Walker, State Protection Forester, from Hawaii Division of Forestry & Wildlife to join ODF’s Statewide Support Team. This is the first deployment for Hawaii under the NW Compact. Walker will be serving the team as a Resource Unit Leader.

The purpose of the NW Compact is to promote effective prevention, suppression, and control of forest fires in the Northwest wildland region of the United States and Western areas of Canada. It provides an efficient way for member states, provinces, and territories to cope with wildland fires that might be beyond the capabilities of a single member agency, through information sharing, technology and resource distribution.

Weather
Westerly general winds will continue today along the east slopes of the Cascades and through the terrain gaps. These will pick up on Monday. Isolated thunderstorms are possible today over southeast Oregon and possibly over northeastern Washington. Temperatures will continue to be slightly below normal today through Monday.

Prevention
As firefighters take advantage of more favorable weather conditions, make sure you’re not adding another fire to their tasks. Keep up on your fire prevention and learn more at www.keeporegongreen.org.

Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 26, 2024

July 26, 2024

ODF Incident Management Teams

• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.
• Team 2 is currently on rotation.

ODF Priority Fires

There are approximately 8,346 personnel assigned to the 45 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

ODF Highlight: Multi-mission Aviation

So far this season, ODF’s multi-mission aircraft has been first to detect 14 fires statewide. But detection is just one of its multiple missions. The aircraft has also been collecting data and imagery over some of the state’s large fires. This information is critical to the fire managers on the ground, and thanks to a satellite antenna, it can be livestreamed or uploaded immediately. The MMA typically runs night missions, and trained personnel on the aircraft use night-vision goggles, infrared sensors and augmented reality software to pull a clear operational picture out of the darkness.

ODF has also been leveraging a much smaller aircraft this season. The department is one of the only states with drone contracts for wildfire response. Drone missions this fire season have included heat mapping, photography, videography, aerial ignitions and LiDAR mapping.

Weather

Westerly general winds will continue today along the east slopes of the Cascades and through the gaps. Less wind is expected today in the Columbia Basin and southeastern Oregon.  There are widespread areas of smoke near and downwind of ongoing fires. Temperatures are a little below normal on the east side and well below normal on the west side. East of the Cascades, the potential for new large fires and overall growth of existing fires will decrease further east of the Cascades on Friday and Saturday due to lack of lightning and less wind. West of the Cascades, the potential for new significant fires has dropped below normal due to fuels moisture, cooler weather and possible light rain early next week.

Prevention

While conditions on the ground are getting a bit better, fire danger is still high or extreme. We need Oregonians to help our people on the ground by preventing human-caused fires. Every new fire puts more of a strain on firefighters and diverts resources away from focusing on the many fires we already have out there. Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 25, 2024

July 25, 2024

ODF incident management teams:

• Team 1 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 1 and Courtrock fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex – Zone 2 near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.
• Team 2 is currently on rotation.

ODF Priority Fires:

There are approximately 6,774 personnel assigned to the 38 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

Overnight on the Battle Mountain Complex, the Boneyard Fire merged into the Monkey Creek Fire, and will now only be referred to as the Monkey Creek Fire. Fire officials split the Battle Mountain Complex into two zones, with ODF Team 1 managing the west portion of the complex and ODF Team 3 managing the east. Zones are used for effective management and resource allocation.

Agency Highlight: Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs) are independent, non-profit, volunteer fire organizations that provide local fire protection in rural Oregon, usually in areas outside of local fire district

protection. There are 28 RFPAs that protect 17.5 million acres of rangeland and are an integral part of Oregon’s complete and coordinated system.

RFPAs are usually some of the first resources to respond and begin work on a fire while more resources are on their way. Recently, the Burnt River Rangeland Fire Protection Association was the first to respond the Thompson,  Durkee and Huntington fires the week before, providing invaluable support for initial attack.

Four RFPAs in Harney County—Lone Pine, North Harney, Crane and Silver Creek— have all provided resources to the Falls, Telephone, Ritter and Cow Creek fires, but also helped evacuate cattle from threatened private and federal lands in the early stages of the fire. Lookout-Glasgow, Keating, and Vale RFPAs have also contributed greatly to firefighting operations in both Malheur and Baker counties.

ODF supports the associations through administrative guidance, insurance reimbursement, fire suppression training and facilitating access to federal grants and surplus firefighting equipment.

What to expect this week

Weather: Winds will decrease today over most areas east of the Cascades except for southeast Oregon. Temperatures and humidity will begin moderating as winds fall off further on Friday and over the weekend. Thunderstorms will move east of the area on Thursday through the weekend.

Prevention: Even the smallest of sparks could start the next wildfire. Now more than ever we need Oregonians to prevent human-caused fires and not bring fire hazards onto the landscape. By having fewer human-caused fires, our resources can focus on detecting, assessing and suppressing new fires and putting out the current large fires.

Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 24, 2024

July 24, 2024

ODF incident management teams:

• Team 1 is in command of the Boneyard and Courtrock fires near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). Governor Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for this fire. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• North Carolina Forest Service Complex Incident Management Team (CIMT) is in command of the Cottage Grove Complex (ODF South Cascade District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. This team was ordered in by ODF through a state-to-state mutual aid agreement.
• Team 2 is currently on rotation.

ODF Priority Fires:

There are approximately 6,781 personnel assigned to the 34 large fires across the state, not including many of the local and agency government employees, landowners, forestland operators, and members of the community who are contributing every day.

Over 200 resources from 18 states have come to fight alongside Oregonians through ODF’s state-to-state mutual aid agreements and the NW Compact with more on the way.

District Highlight: Earlier this week, firefighters in the Klamath-Lake District responded to the Poe Fire alongside local fire districts. Due to the conditions, the fire was extremely active from the beginning and had the potential to move and grow quickly.

The homeowner’s work in creating defensible space not only saved their home but provided a safe access point for resources to get ahead of and catch the fire. The forward progression of the fire was stopped at four acres, and it has been fully contained since.

What to expect this week

Weather: Today is the peak day of concern as an approaching will produce abundant lightning from south central Oregon to far northeast Washington extending south to the Oregon border. Outflow wind gusts have potential of reaching 50-70 mph. A wetting rain is possible, but unlikely for most storms. Additionally, a mainly dry cold front will increase general winds east of the Cascade crest at all elevations and not just the Cascade gaps. Very gusty winds continue through Thursday for all central and eastern PSAs. Thursday also begins a cooler, but still lower humidity, trend lasting into early next week. Low (15% or less) chances of thunderstorms return Saturday through Tuesday.

Prevention: There are red flag warnings in effect across Central and Eastern Oregon for the next couple of days. This means that the area is in critical fire condition. Even the smallest of sparks could start the next wildfire. Now more than ever we need Oregonians to prevent human-caused fires and not bring fire hazards onto the landscape. By having less human-caused fires, our resources can focus on detecting, assessing and suppressing new fires and putting out the current large fires.

Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 22, 2024

July 22, 2024

Last week’s highlights

ODF incident management teams:

• Team 1 is in command of the Boneyard Fire near Monument (ODF Central Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is in command of the Battle Mountain Complex near Ukiah (ODF Northeast Oregon District). The Oregon State Fire Marshal has ordered a conflagration. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 2 is currently on mandatory rest after demobilizing from the Larch Creek fire.

ODF Priority Fires:

• Battle Mountain Complex near Ukiah (estimated 42,474 ac. Combined)
  • Includes the Snake (13,557 ac.), NF Owens (3,887 ac.), and Monkey Creek Fire (25,030 ac.)
• Cottage Grove Complex in the South Cascade District (emerging incident, acreage undetermined)
• Boneyard Fire near Monument (14,602 ac.)
• Lone Rock Fire near Condon (116,563 ac)
• Durkee Fire near Durkee (173,758 ac.)
• Whiskey Creek Fire in the Central Oregon District (165 ac.)
• Falls Fire near Burns (120,919 ac.)
• Cougar Creek in Washington near the Northeast Oregon border (8,271 ac.)

After two significant lightning events that started Wednesday (July 17, 2024) evening of last week and ended Sunday, July 21, 2024, the state saw multiple new fire starts primarily across Southern, Central and Eastern Oregon. Due to conditions, especially in Central and Eastern Oregon, a good number of these ignitions experienced high fire activity from the beginning and grew exponentially within a 12–24 hour period.

Over the last week, there have been 2190 lightning strikes across the state, with 632 lightning strikes within the last 24 hours. A weather alert for dry lightning remains in effect through Tuesday, July 23.

However, even in all the chaos, there are successes within the Oregon Department of Forestry.

• ODF IMT 2 demobilized from the Larch Creek Fire near Dufur and transferred command to a local IMT 3, leaving the fire in a good place for the new team to finish it off. The Larch Creek Fire shows how state and local organizations can succeed when they work together to protect communities and natural resources.
• In just five hours from midnight to 5 a.m. yesterday (Sunday) ODF’s Western Lane District received 56 lightning strikes. Anticipating the storm, ODF had staff out early searching for strikes. Along with landowner partners, district firefighters were able to limit the number of fires to six, the largest being four acres. All six fires are now in the mop up phase.
• In the Southwest Oregon District, Firefighters worked overnight Wednesday, July 17, on numerous small fires along the lower Rogue River in Josephine County, making good progress on most incidents and extinguishing others completely. Following the first round of thunderstorms, 10 fires were reported on the steep terrain northwest of Rand and Galice. Resources from ODF, Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest immediately responded. As a result, all fires were caught or held at an acre or less.

After the second round of thunderstorms over the weekend, firefighters worked all day on four new lightning-caused fires across the Oregon Department of Forestry Southwest Oregon District, and as of 6 p.m. Sunday, all fires are 100% lined and in various stages of mop up.

What to expect this week

Weather: Low pressure centered off the British Columbia. coast will start nudging across the Pacific NW today. Afternoon/evening thunderstorms will be focused more over eastern Oregon plus eastern Washington near the Canadian border. A deepening marine layer will start spilling over the Cascade east slopes and gaps today potentially bringing very gusty wind to new and existing fires. Conditions somewhat ease Tuesday, but general winds ramp up Wednesday on the eastside. Instability and thunderstorms become pushed south and east as the upper low moves from British Columbia. into Alberta. Some thunderstorms may clip far southeast Oregon Thursday, but the overall trend will be for temperatures and humidity returning closer to normal.

Prevention: With resources strained and limited, NOW more than ever we need Oregonians to prevent human-caused fires and not bring fire hazards onto the landscape. By having less human-caused fires, our resources can focus on detecting, assessing and suppressing new lightning-caused fires that will be popping up in the next several days.

Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)

ODF Wildland Fire Situation Report – July 16, 2024

July 16, 2024

Last week’s highlights

ODF incident management teams:

• Team 1 is in command of the Salt Creek Fire near Eagle Point (ODF Southwest Oregon District). Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page. Command is anticipated to transfer over to a Type 3 team on Wednesday, July 17.
• Team 2 is in command of the Larch Creek Fire near Dufur (ODF Central Oregon District). The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Green Team demobilized July 16. Updates available on the incident’s Facebook page.
• Team 3 is currently on rotation and available for dispatch.

The agency is working with the U.S. Forest Service on the Falls Fire near Riley (CIMT NW Team 8 in command), which has grown to be 55,000 acres with approximately 5,575 acres of those acres being on ODF-protected land. The agency is also in cooperation with our partners on the Lone Rock Fire, which is currently around 65,000 acres with approximately 15,000 of those acres on ODF-protected land.

This past Friday, July 12, 2024, Governor Kotek declared an extended state of emergency due to imminent threat of wildfire until October 1, 2024. Through this declaration, the agency has the ability to call upon more resources, like the National Guard, to assist in wildfire suppression efforts in Oregon.

ODF has received more than 58 resources from New Mexico, Idaho, Montana, Oklahoma, Texas, Georgia, Colorado, and Florida to assist in the Salt Creek and Larch Creek fires. The agency will receive 13 more firefighters from Florida in the coming days to assist the agency’s Incident Management Team 3 and other severity efforts.

A total of 71 resources are coming to Oregon through state-to-state mutual aid agreements and the Northwest Compact. The compact was created to facilitate assistance in wildland fire pre-suppression and suppression efforts between member agencies, which include Hawaii, Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and the Yukon and Northwest Territories.

What to expect this week

Weather: High pressure drifts back westward today while a compact upper trough develops off the northern California coast. Isolated dry thunderstorms possible along the Oregon/California border this afternoon. Locally gusty winds continue along portions of the Cascade east slopes and gaps. Ongoing fires across eastern Oregon continue to have moderately strong mixing and ventilation potential. Significant ignition concerns return Tuesday through Wednesday as the weak trough moves northward across the Geographic Area. This recognized pattern brings potential for active elevated thunderstorms and notable lightning. Location details will evolve with time. Gusty winds look to return east of the Cascades each afternoon on Wednesday and Thursday.

Prevention: The majority of the fires we’ve seen so far this fire season are due to—likely unintentionally—someone’s actions. Please, know the fire danger level of the areas where you live, work and play, and follow all local restrictions on burning, equipment use, campfires and other activities that can start wildfires. Find danger levels and restrictions across the state here.

Resources

• ODF wildfire blog and Public Fire Restrictions/Danger Levels map
• Regional situation report and national situation report
• Inciweb (information, photos, videos, and maps from specific incidents)