Crews battle new, 60-acre wildfire south of Detroit Lake

Potential to spread, officials say, but no danger to communities, structures

SWEET HOME, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A new fire reported Monday afternoon eight miles south of Detroit Lake has burned about 60 acres, Willamette National Forest officials said Tuesday.

A Forest Service lookout detected the new fire near the boundary between the Detroit and Sweet Home ranger districts.

The Bruler Fire is burning near the junction of Forest Road 11 (Straight Creek Road/Quartzville Road) and Forest Road 1133.  Local firefighters and aircraft rapidly responded and remained on scene until late into the evening.

On Tuesday, crews will continue to aggressively attack the fire and aircraft will resume dropping water in attempt to slow fire growth. A Type 2 Incident Management team will in-brief Tuesday evening and take command of the fire Wednesday morning. Additional resources have been ordered and are expected to arrive in the coming days.

Smoke will continue to be visible from the town of Detroit and Santiam Pass, with light to moderate smoke expected to settle in lower elevation areas in the vicinity overnight.

“This fire does have the potential to spread, and the forest is very dry,” said Sweet Home District Ranger and agency administrator Nikki Swanson. “The safety of the public and the firefighters is our first priority. We’re in the process of closing several roads and trails to ensure firefighters can work efficiently and that the public remains safe. This will be managed as a full suppression fire.”

The public is asked to avoid Daly lake, Tule lake, the Old Cascade Crest trails, Forest Roads 11 (Straight Creek Road/Quartzville Road), Forest Road 10 leading south from Detroit Lake, Forest Roads 1161, 1133 and 1012. Linn County is assisting the Forest Service with notifying the public in the area as a precaution. There may be increased fire traffic on Highway 22.

The fire is not currently threatening any communities or structures. The cause of the fire remains under investigation and containment is currently 0%.

For additional information, please follow the Willamette National Forest Facebook page or Twitter (@WillametteNF