Burns near Wickiup Res. send smoke streaming north

Fuels specialists began burning about 180 acres near Wickiup Reservoir on Saturday and the smoke apparently streamed north into populated areas of the High Desert early Sunday, causing “unhealthy” pollution levels, according to a DEQ air quality monitoring station.

Four separate units were planned to be burned adjacent to the Hanner Park, Wild River and Ponderosa Estates subdivisions. The burns were expected to take two days to complete.

NewsChannel 21 Meteorologist Travis Knudsen said the jet stream sent the smoke north into the Bend area, where an air inversion trapped it near the ground early Sunday.

The purpose of these burns is to reduce hazardous fuels within the wildland-urban interface, as well as enhancing riparian area ecosystem health, said the Central Oregon Fire Management Service.

According to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Air Quality Index, Bend’s one-hour particulate reading at 9 a.m. Sunday was in the level considered “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” while the 24-hour reading was deemed “unhealthy” for all.

By 10 a.m., the smoke had dissipated to the point where the one-hour reading was in the “good” category and the 24-hour measurement was “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” as opposed to everyone.

People sensitive to smoke are urged in such conditions to close windows and limit their time outdoors.

Several dispersed sites along Forest Road 44 were closed in advance of the burn and will remain closed for public safety through the weekend.

No road closures are anticipated with this project. However, officials advised that smoke from the operations could be visible from Forest Road 44 and Burgess Road (forest Road 43).

Fuels specialists are following policies outlined in the Oregon Department of Forestry smoke management plan, which governs prescribed fires, and attempts to minimize impacts to visibility and public health. Once ignited, units are monitored and patrolled until they are declared out.

For more information, visit the “Prescribed Fires” link on the Deschutes National Forest website, http://www.fs.usda.gov/deschutes/, or follow on Twitter @CentralORFIre