Brushfires stopped N. of La Pine, SE of Prineville

Smaller brushfires continue to keep fire crews busy on the High Desert, including two on Saturday in Crook County’s Juniper Canyon and earlier in the day north of La Pine.

Crook County Fire and Rescue responded shortly after 3 p.m. to a reported garage fire and arrived to find a wildfire that had burned near a home, said Fire Chief Matt Smith,

Smith said the fire was held to about two acres in size, thanks in part to neighbors who helped protect the house and property before crews arrived. The Oregon Department of Forestry and BLM helped tackle the blaze, which Smith said was caused by an arcing power line that ignited the grass below

Earlier Saturday, crews tackled and lined a small brushfire found burning near the Deschutes River north of La Pine.

The smoldering brushfire was reported by a fire lookout and call to Deschutes County dispatch shortly before 8 a.m., west of Foster Road near the Deschutes River, north of La Pine State Park, said sheriff’s Sgt. Nathan Garibay, the county’s emergency services coordinator

Oregon Department of Forestry, U.S. Forest Service and La Pine Rural Fire District crews responded and got the fire lined at about 2/10 of an acre by late morning, Garibay said.

A portable pump was drafting water out of the river for mop-up operations, he added.