Crews hunt for hot spots in 800-acre Warm Springs fire

(Update: Crews seek hot spots; highway at one lane with pilot car)

A smoldering fire near the former Warm Springs wood mill rekindled for the third time this year in high winds Monday afternoon, sparking a wildfire that raced across 800 acres, jumped and closed Highway 26 for several hours and pushed south toward a neighborhood where residents were ordered to evacuate.

The Indian Head Casino and the Museum at Warm Springs also were closed, but word came around 9 p.m. that the highway had reopened.

Fire crews were busy Tuesday looking for hot spots, while the Greeley Heights subdivision, which has lost no homes to the blaze, was reduced to a Level 1 (Be Ready) pre-evacuation notice. Portions were at Level 3 evacuation order (Go Now) after the fire broke out and the rest at Level 2 (Get Set) alert.

Highway 26 was still open Tuesday morning, but down to one lane with a pilot car guiding traffic as crews cleared brush from the side of the road.

Damage to power poles along the highway likely is why the Rainbow Market lost power Monday afternoon. The owner said Tuesday she’ll have to throw out some products as a result.

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Earlier story:

“They called it 20 acres 20 minutes ago, but I’m sure it’s tripled in size by now,” William Wilson, tribal assistant fire management officer for logistics, told NewsChannel 21 early on in the firefight, around 3:30 p.m. Within an hour, the Mecca Fire was estimated at 300 acres and at 500 acres an hour after that, with no estimate yet of containment. The late-night estimate grew to 800 acres.

“It jumped the highway on the south side and is now making a run across the Quail Trail area” of the reservation, Wilson said, moving toward the Greeley Heights neighborhood, where a Level 3 (Go Now) evacuation order was issued for some of about 50 homes and a Level 2 (Get Set) notice for the rest.

The strong winds were blowing much of the smoke south into the Bend-Redmond area.

A five-mile stretch of the highway near the Deschutes River, from mileposts 103 to 108, was closed for several hours. Wilson said several power poles had burned along the highway and cottonwood trees were burning at the base, threatening to fall.

Tim Surgeon was one of the many drivers in line, waiting for the highway to reopen.

Surgeon owns a shuttle service for fishermen in the area and he was going to retrieve some of his boats in the area.

“It’s kind of bad on my business but, you know, I guess you have to put up with stuff,” Surgeon said.

Wilson said the fire had been smoldering since last year in the old byproducts of lumber production, such as sawdust and bark. “They call them ‘cancer fires’ because they don’t go in” due to the hazardous nature of the materials burning. “Multiple places around the mill have that.”

Two regional task forces of firefighters — one structural protection, one wildland fire crews — were called up. Wilson said a total of six 20-person hand crews and 10 engines had been ordered, noting that the engines can’t help in remote areas with few roads.

But there was some good news in the evening, as retardant plane drops had slowed the spread of the blaze, Wilson said. “It’s also hitting those rocks and trees atop the ridgeline.”

With warmer temperatures and more wind, the fire is expected to continue to spread Tuesday. “We’re expecting these type of winds through (July) 5th.”

Central Oregon Fire Management also had crews on the east side of the Deschutes River, in case the blaze jumped the river onto private land.

Wilson said about 50 Warm Springs firefighters would monitor the fire overnight before the buildup of crews arrives Tuesday.

“The wind’s pushing it hard,” Wilson said in the late afternoon, noting that there were no roads in its way for two or three miles. He said the road it will then encounter is where an effort to dig lines to stop it is likely.

KWSO radio reported the fire was “spreading uphill, driven by strong, erratic winds.” Warm Springs Public Safety issued a Level 3 evacuation in Greeley Heights along Mt. Jefferson Street to the Water Tower Road. A Level 2 evacuation alert was in effect for the rest of the subdivision.

The American Red Cross opened a shelter at the Warm Springs Community Center, at 2200 Hollywood Boulevard.

“Individuals and families affected by the wildfire and in need of shelter assistance are encouraged to simply show up at the shelter for help,” the agency said.

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