Crews make progress on 65-acre Gorge fire

Firefighters continued to make progress overnight on the Memaloose Park Fire, located along Interstate 84 about 10 miles west of Hood River, the Oregon Department of Forestry reported.

Here’s the rest of their 9 a.m. Saturday update:

Firefighters held the fire within the perimeter and worked on building and strengthening containment lines, focusing on the eastern edge of the fire. Crews also worked to knock down hot spots within the fire perimeter and began mop-up adjacent to the fire line.

Firefighters will continue this work today with additional resources arriving. The fire is being managed under unified command between the Oregon Department of Forestry and Mid Columbia Fire and Rescue.

A Type 2 helicopter will be working with the ground resources to extinguish hot spots. FireBoss scooper tankers from Washington Department of Natural Resources and heavy air tankers are also available if needed.

The fire is threatening the community of Rowena Dell. Evacuation levels remain the same this morning. A Level 2 (Get Set) pre-evacuation notice remained in place at Rowena Dell and Level 1 (Get Ready) for the surrounding area.

Evacuation information can be found on the Wasco County Sheriff’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/WascoCountySheriff/ .

Interstate 84 remains open Saturday, a day, but U.S. Highway 30 is closed from Marsh Cutoff Road east to the Rowena interchange. Memaloose State Park is closed to new campers trying to enter the campground. Campers who left the campground during the firefighting activity will be allowed to re-enter.

Reduced fire behavior overnight allowed firefighters to map the perimeter more closely. The fire is currently estimated at 65 acres, with 25 percent containment. This increase is not a result of fire growth, but better mapping.

The fire burned lands within Memaloose State Park and private lands protected by Oregon Department of Forestry, Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue protection, and some lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The fire is human-caused and under investigation.

Check our ODOT TripCheck page for the latest traffic conditions in the Gorge and elsewhere in the state.