SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) – On Friday, the Oregon State Fire Marshal sent structural protection resources to the Durkee Fire in Baker County through Immediate Response. The fire was reported Wednesday night off Interstate 84 near the community of Durkee. It has grown substantially since it was first ignited, prompting new Level 3 evacuation notices. As of
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(Update: New details, photo) CROOKED RIVER RANCH, Ore. (KTVZ) – A fast-moving brush fire brought numerous firefighters from several agencies to Crooked River Ranch early Thursday evening, prompting evacuations and call-up of a multi-agency task force that stopped the blaze at just over eight acres. The Quail Fire, as it was named, was reported by
Continue ReadingSALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) – On Thursday night, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for a series of fires in Umatilla County near Pilot Rock. The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office is mobilizing its Green Incident Management Team and three structural task forces from Benton, Marion, and Polk counties. One of those task forces was
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Thunderstorms that rumbled through much of Oregon Tuesday night ignited at least 10 lightning-caused fires on the Umpqua National Forest, the largest growing to about 200 acres Wednesday near Diamond Lake.
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La PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) – A homeless camp resident was arrested Wednesday afternoon on a reckless burning charge, accused of leaving a burn pit unattended, which ignited a fire near the Huntington Meadows subdivision that firefighters stopped at a small size. Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched around 2:15 p.m. to a fire reported in
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The week-old Falls Fire burning in Harney and Grant counties about 13 miles north of Burns continues to grow, now topping 91,000 acres, as does a firefighting force now at more than 1,400 personnel. It’s still at zero containment amid evacuations, but nearby U.S. Highway 395 is now open without traffic escorts.
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Thunderstorms that rumbled northward into Central Oregon Tuesday evening had firefighters responding to stop eight small lightning-sparked blazes, while trees were downed in Crook County, officials and weather spotters said.
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Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., visited La Pine Tuesday for a “focused tour” and discussions with worried La Pine residents and officials about public lands management in the wake of the nearly 4,000-acre Darlene 3 Fire that threatened the town late last month.
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PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The Oregon Humane Society says it helped rescue 19 dogs from a remote area in the path of the Larch Creek Fire, assisted by The Dalles Police Department’s animal control officer and the Columbia Gorge Humane Society. The OHS said in a Facebook post Monday that the fire “was heading their
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A wildfire reported late Saturday afternoon near North Twin Lake, prompting the campground’s evacuation, has been fully contained at 11 acres, but the campground will stay closed at least until Friday for more firefighting work, officials said Monday.
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A vehicle fire along U.S. Highway 97 at Juniper Butte sparked a wind-fanned brush fire Wednesday afternoon that quickly grew to more than 600 acres, closed a six-mile stretch of the highway between Redmond and Madras for hours, prompted evacuations and brought a major air and ground fire attack that got a line around the blaze.
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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The pilot of a helicopter that was responding to a small wildfire in central Idaho before crashing in the Sawtooth National Forest survived and was able to hike to a waiting ambulance, officials said. “Our pilot was on board and survived, and an investigation is underway,” U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Angela
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The Oregon Department of Forestry has billed property owner James Verheyden almost $69,000 for the costs of fighting the March 2021 Bull Springs Fire that burned 211 acres northwest of Bend, near Tumalo.
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Firefighters working to secure lines in more record-breaking heat brought the now 4-day-old 458-acre McCaffery Fire east of Redmond Airport to 100% containment Tuesday, after the Deschutes and Crook county sheriff’s offices dropped evacuation levels further Tuesday morning, to Level 1 Be Ready. And they said Thursday those will be lifted in the evening.
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Since June, there have been 100 human-caused wildfires on national forests and grasslands in Oregon and Washington, Forest Service officials said Thursday. While firefighters have been largely successful in putting out these preventable fires, the extremely hot and dry conditions are significantly ramping up fire danger across the region.
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Redmond Police released dramatic bodycam video Thursday of officers rushing to, then kicking in the door of a burning home to awaken and rescue five people sleeping inside, a blaze that investigators tied to improper disposal of legal fireworks.
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The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office shared this video of a “super scooper” plane drawing water out of Lake Billy Chinook to dump on the Juniper Fire burning west of Highway 97 Wednesday afternoon and evening.
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Jefferson County firefighters, joined by several other departments from around the region, rushed to stop and put out a string of three brush fires in the Culver area Monday afternoon that may have been sparked by a passing train amid very hot, dry conditions.
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LAKECREEK, Ore. (KTVZ) – A new fire in southwest Oregon grew to an estimated 1,500 acres by Sunday night, but Oregon Department of Forestry officials said air tankers were able to complete temporary containment lines, helping firefighters work overnight on permanent ones. The Salt Creek Fire was reported on Salt Creek Road, north of Lakecreek.
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It’s somehow somewhat fitting that the close-knit community of Prineville, like much of the High Desert, was under a Red Flag Warning on Saturday, meaning a combination of extreme heat, winds and low humidity brought what forecasters call “critical fire weather conditions.”
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