Wildfire south of John Day puts up tall plume

Firefighters quicklyresponded to two new fires on the Crescent Ranger District of the Deschutes National Forest on Tuesday, holding them to under an acre in size, officials said Wednesday as activity increased on a fire near the John Day River.

There have been over 150 fires across Central Oregon–mostless than an acre–since July 28. All fires that have been contained and mopped upare being monitored and patrolled, the Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch Center reported.

The 200-acre Goose Paint Fire nine miles north of Mitchell did not expand Tuesday. Firefighters have put fire line around the fire and continued mop-up work Wednesday.

The Goose Paint Fire was burning in a mix of private and BLM-administered lands.

The South Fork Complex, south of John Day and east of the Ochoco National Forest, continues to be managed by Oregon Incident Management Team 4 (Type II-Watts). The fire is now reported at 35,965 acres and is 15 percent contained.

One of those fires, the Murderers Creek Fire, saw significant activity Wednesday afternoon, putting up a tall plume visible over a wide area.

The Murderers Creek Fire was approaching two cabins south of the Aldrich Lookout, where structure protection was in place and fixed wing aircraft were dropping retardant.

Plumes of smoke were visible from Dayville, caused by increased fire activity as well as a burnout operation along the South Fork of the John Day near the mouth of Murderers Creek.

Officials reported good progress is being made in completing containment on the Buck Fork Fire.

For specific information about this incident, please call(866) 347-0636.

The Castle Fire burning south of the Metolius River on the Sisters Ranger District, Deschutes National Forest is now 60 percent contained and remains at 16 acres. An area closure remains in place for the Sisters Ranger District, which includes the Monty Campground.

A Red Flag Warning has been issued for northeast Oregon and southeast Washington, which also was forecast to bring increased winds to Central Oregon Wednesday afternoon.

More information on Oregon’s fires can be found at: http://nwccweb.us/index.aspx and http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/state/38/ , Local fire info can be found at http://centralorfireinfo.blogspot.com/

You can also see and interact with a Northwest major fires map here, provided by our Oregon Public Broadcasting partners. And tune in to NewsChannel 21 at 5, 6, 10 and 11 for the very latest updates.

Here’s the Oregon Department of Forestry’s Wednesday update on fires burning around the state:

A Red Flag Warning has been issued for northeast Oregon and southeast Washington.

Large Fires within ODF protection:

New large fires:

Central Oregon District:
Rowena Fire: an approximately 100 acre fire six miles west of The Dalles started about 9 p.m. August 5 . The Incident Commander John Buckman and the Oregon Department of Forestry Incident Management Team 1 will assume command of this fire today . Governor Kitzhaber invoked the Conflagration Act to authorize the State Fire Marshal to mobilize structural firefighters and equipment to assist local resources battling the fire.
Structures: 70 homes threatened;
Personnel and equipment: 59 personnel and structural equipment in place. Three structural protection task forces have been requested. Task Force 1 from Washington County and Task Force 2 from Columbia County are on scene. Task Force 3 from Yamhill County is en route. Other personnel and equipment have been ordered.
Evacuations: Wasco County Sheriff’s Office evacuated 7 homes as of last night . The American Red Cross set up a shelter at the Mosier Grange Hall for those displaced by the fire.
Media: A media staging area has been established at Rowena River Road. The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Incident Management Team Public Information Officer Justin DeRuyter will meet you there. Take the Rowena exit from I-84, take a left back under the I-84 freeway. You will see the staging area on the right.

Updates:

Southwest Oregon District:
Beaver Complex (Salt Creek and Oregon Gulch Fires): Yesterday , Initial Attack crews located and contained 3 lightning fires that started within the team’s responsibility.
Salt Creek Fire: a 155 acre fire is 95% contained. This lightning caused fire 20 miles northwest of Medford started July 30 .

Oregon Gulch Fire: covers 36,723 acres (about 9,500 in California) is 35% contained. Lightning also caused this fire, 15 miles east of Ashland, on July 30 .

Personnel and Equipment: 49 crews, 96 engines, 39 dozers, 23 water tenders, 20 helicopters, 2 air tankers, and 1,720 personnel
Evacuations: Level 2 evacuation in Klamath River Canyon from John C. Boyle Dam to California border.
Level 2 evacuation notice in place for the Copco road on the 6000 block south to the Oregon border.
Level 1 evacuation notice in place for Hwy 66 from the Green Springs Fire Station to the 2000 block on Hwy 66.
Buildings: 270 homes and 50 outbuildings are threatened; 6 homes were destroyed.
More information:
http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4034/
Oregon Fire Information Number: 541-488-7726 (New Phone Number)
California Fire Information Number: 530-842-2266
Hours of operation: 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Twitter – www.twitter.com/swofire/
Southwest Oregon District Blog – http://www.swofire.com/
Smoke Information – http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/
DEQ – http://www.deq.state.or.us/AQ/burning/wildfires/index.htm
Jackson County Sheriff’s Office – https://www.facebook.com/#!/JacksonCountySheriff
CAL FIRE Ready, Set, Go – http://www.readyforwildfire.org/
CAL FIRE – www.fire.ca.gov
Siskiyou County Pollution Control District – http://tinyurl.com/ljzak8a

Northeast Oregon District:
5 Mile Fire: a 4,500 acre fire is 20% contained. It started August 3 and is 20 miles northeast of Enterprise and 2 miles south of Imnaha.
Personnel and Equipment: 256 personnel
Evacuations: Wallowa County Sheriff Office issued a Level 1 “Get Ready” evacuation notice to the Imnaha community at 6AM Aug. 5. The fire is about 2 miles south of Imnaha.
More information: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4048/ .
Community Meetings are scheduled in Imnaha August 6th at 5 pm at the church and in Joseph on August 7th at 6 pm at the Community Center.

Central Oregon District:
South Fork Complex (Murderers Creek South and Buck Fork Fires): these July 31 lightning caused fires cover 35,965 acres are 15% contained.
Personnel: 528
Evacuations: The Grant County Sheriff’s Department has issued a Level 1 Evacuation for the area south of Highway 26, west of 21 Road (Fields Creek) and east of 42 Road (South Fork of the John Day River).
More information: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4042/
Fire Information Office Phone: 1-866-347-0636
southforkcomplex.blogspot.com
southforkcomplex@gmail.com

Fires on other jurisdictions in Oregon

More information on these fires can be found at: http://nwccweb.us/index.aspx and http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/ .

FIRE STATISTICS
Due to heavy firefighting activity our fire statistics have not been updated. They will return when the database has been made current.

Statewide air quality index readings are available at http://www.deq.state.or.us/aqi/index.aspx .

OTHER FIRE INFORMATION
ODF maintains a blog at http://wildfireoregondeptofforestry.blogspot.com/ , which includes breaking news on wildfires statewide, along with current fire statistics, and a frequently updated Twitter feed at https://twitter.com/ORDeptForestry .

For information on wildfires in other jurisdictions within Oregon, go to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center website, http://www.nwccweb.us/ and to the national Incident Information System website at http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/ .

Statewide air quality index readings are available at http://www.deq.state.or.us/aqi/index.aspx .