Small brushfire stopped quickly south of Bend

The cause of a quarter-acre wildfire south of Bend late Friday afternoon has not been determined by investigators, but the blaze prompted officials to note it’s another reminder that high-risk fire season is at hand.

Bend firefighters responded to a report of smoke south of Park Vista Circle around 4:25 p.m., officials said. While crews were en route, Deschutes County dispatchers received more calls of an active brushfire in the area and the alarm was upgraded, they said.

Crews arrived to find a quarter-acre of brush and grass on fire, with scattered Ponderosa pine trees also involved, officials said.

The fire was quickly put out by Bend firefighters and mutual-aid crews from the Oregon Department of Forestry and the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire department urged residents to follow all safety guidelines when using fire outdoors.