Shevlin Fire update: Blaze was human-caused

As crews continued mop-up work Friday, investigators said the 10-acre wildfire that broke out Thursday afternoon along Tumalo Creek in Shevlin Park west of Bend was human-caused.

It quickly grew to 8-10 acres, prompting road closures, evacuation of the park and pre-evacuation notices to two nearby subdivisions.

It is “undetermined if (the fire) was accidental or intentional,” the Bend Fire Department said in its daily media report.

The Shevlin Fire was reported around 1:30 p.m.Thursday, burning on the east side of the creek, in a canyon downstream of Aspen Hall, though it later jumped the creek, officials said. By 4:30 p.m., officials were saying the fire’s growth had been stopped and good progress.

“We are very confident that we have a fire line all the way around it,” Bend Fire Battalion Chief Dave Howe told NewsChannel 21’s Lauren Martinez live at 5 p.m. from the incident command post at COCC.

“We have hoses all the way around it. It’s not moving anywhere now,” he said. “We’re pretty happy with the progress on the fire.”

Shevlin Park Road, which turns into Johnson Ranch Road west of the park, reopened by 9 p.m. Howe said the fire would be declared contained at midnight, which is also when the Level 1 pre-evacuation notice would be lifted for the Three Pines and Shevlin Commons neighborhoods.

“We appreciate the patience of the residents in the area,” Howe said in a 10 p.m. update. “The safety of everyone working the fire and living in the area is our top priority.”

The north half of Shevlin Park remained closed Friday, officials said, though Aspen Hall was open for private events. The south half of the park remained open.

The blaze did bring echoes of last year’s Two Bulls Fire, which also broke out in June and threatened homes on Bend’s Westside — but grew far bigger and faster, to about 7,000 acres.

Deschutes County sheriff’s Sgt. Nathan Garibay, in a phone update Friday morning to NewsChannel 21 at Sunrise, said the two fires had different behavior, but noted the Shevlin Fire “began a lot closer to homes,” meaning potential evacuation plans and notices had to roll out much faster.

“So we had to make come real quick decisions, and put some folks on alert,” he said.

Garibay said Thursday that Shevlin Park Road, which becomes Johnson Road past the park, was closed between Park Commons Drive and Bull Springs Road during the evening, due to fire operations.

Howe said later that motorists still need to remain careful, as trucks and firefighting gear will remain in the area.

At the peak, about 90 people were battling the blaze, Howe said, and about 40 will work on the fire through the night and crews will be on it all day Friday as well, to be sure there are no flare-ups in another day of windy, low-humidity “red flag warning” conditions..

The early-season wildfire — just over a year after another early-season blaze west of Bend, the Two Bulls blaze — broke out on the north side of Tumalo Creek, near the Tumalo Irrigation District intake, Howe said. It grew from a quarter-acre to 10 acres within two hours, with prolific “spotting” and brisk winds fueling burning conditions.

The Oregon Department of Forestry led the investigation into the fire’s cause, since it began on state-protected land owned by the Bend Park and Recreation District.

The fire prompted authorities to clear out kids, parents and others who were spending part of the blue-sky last day of school visiting Aspen Hall on Shevlin Park Road — in the area where the Awbrey Hall Fire tore through nearly 25 years ago, destroying about 20 homes on Bend’s west side.

Deschutes County issued a Level 1 pre-evacuation notice for the Three Pines and Shevlin Commons subdivisions – the lowest level of alerts, for residents to “be ready” to leave and for those who need more time to leave an area or have health concerns to voluntary leave the area.

The county’s Emergency Phone Network was used to spread the word with recorded messages to all residents in the affected areas, as Search and Rescue crews went door to door with the notice as well.

The pulses of billowing smoke became intermittent before 3 p.m., a hopeful sign officials were making quick work of dousing the fire.

But Howe said the fire was “spotting” at that time, meaning embers advancing ahead of the main fire. So the battle was not over.

Along with Bend fire and police, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies and Deschutes National Forest personnel were on the scene, as well as Bureau of Land Management, the Oregon Department of Forestry.

Howe said a BLM helicopter provided numerous water drops, and a large air tanker circled the scene for about an hour before being released. An air attack plane also circled the fire zone, helping direct operations and watch for problem spots.

Crews were pouring water on the blaze and using bulldozers to build fire line, Howe said. Officials were urging people to stay out of the area.

Sheriff’s deputies closed Shevlin Park Road west from the Three Pines subdivision “so that crews can operate more effectively and safely,” Howe said.

Shevlin Sand and Gravel and 4-R Equipment officials said they quickly brought in five water trucks, keeping flames from spreading up the hill from the park.

Crews also were positioning bulldozers and water tenders from Taylor Northwest and studying possible evacuation plans, in case crews were unable to get a handle on it.