Where’s all the smoke from? Big fires to our south

Winds from the north on Sunday helped push the 50-acre Bessie Butte Fire southeast of Bend away from the city and populated areas. But on Monday, the winds shifted, coming from the south — and that was bringing in smoke from large fires south of the High Desert and making for a familiar gray haze and rising pollution levels.

Central Oregon fire officials said the smoke likely was from fires such as the Timber Crater 6 fire in the remote northeast corner of Crater Lake National Park and the Garner Complex of fires in southwest Oregon, possibly also the Natchez Fire just south of the California border.

By midday Monday in Bend, the air quality level as measured by Oregon DEQ stations had deteriorated to “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” while it was “moderate” in Sisters and Prineville and “good” in Madras.

Still, that was better — so far — than the “healthy” or “very unhealthy” readings seen Monday in southern Oregon communities. In fact, a federal government air quality site reported Shady Cove, Medford and Ashland had the worst pollution readings in the nation.

“There are no large fires in Central Oregon right now,” officials said. “The smoke is most likely blowing in from wildfires around Crater Lake, from southwest Oregon and from Northern California. The afternoon is typically when fires become most active as temperatures increase, humidity drops, and winds pick up.”

They noted that the region has had a number of small fires, less than one acre, over the last week, in addition to some larger ones. The largest in the last 24 hours has been the Bessie Butte Fire, which is holding at 50 acres, along China Hat Road on the Deschutes National Forest.

Smoke from the Substation Fire did not move south into Central Oregon, and the Cemetery Fire, now fully contained at 1,400 acres in the Maury Mountains southeast of Prineville, did not push smoke across Central Oregon, either.

Here’s Monday morning’s update on the Timber Crater 6 Fire:

Crater Lake National Park, OR – Crews made good progress yesterday and achieved 5% containment. Since NW Incident Management Team 9 arrived on July 20, fire managers’ strategy and crews’ work have focused on stopping the fire progression, using a combination of burnout operations and, when safe, working at the fire’s edge. Yesterday, 522 personnel are working the fire, including 18 crews. An infrared flight mapped the fire at 2010 acres.

Weather: Weather could be a concern today if thunderstorms materialize. Though there is only a 20% probability, outflow winds associated with thunderstorms can greatly change fire behavior and push the fire into the forest canopy. Today will again be hot and dry, and expected fire behavior includes short-range spotting and group tree torching. Temperatures will be in the high 80s with relative humidity in the teens.

Yesterday: Hot shot crews on the north and west sides of the fire worked direct along the fire line. Crews mopped up and secured lines after the burnouts to remove fuel in the fire’s path. Other crews did burnout work ahead of the fire’s east side.

Plans for Today: Crews will continue constructing and securing lines on the fire’s north and west flanks. To the south, crews are scouting lines as needed to stay in front of the fire, including an old road to build line. They will also work to secure the burnout on the east side of the fire.

Visibility permitting, three helicopters and two fixed-wing aircraft will be used today to make water drops – not retardant drops — in the park. The CL415s may be scooping from locations at area lakes: Crescent, Lost Creek and Miller Lakes. Recreationists are advised that scooping may occur at any time, and people will be asked to leave the water.

Smoke: Many fires burning across the Northwest Region are producing smoke that continues to flow into the Crater Lake National Park by prevailing winds. At times, this has resulted in reduced visibility and lower air quality. This pattern will continue until fires to the west of Crater Lake National Park can be extinguished. The Timber Crater 6 Fire and strategic burn operations have generated smoke that has flowed toward Hwy. 97. The majority of the smoke visible in the park is from other fires in the region. A smoke monitor will be installed today near the rim of Crater Lake.

Closures and Restrictions: At this time the Timber Crater 6 Fire is not a threat to park attractions or to visitors. All areas in the Crater Lake National Park are open. There are no road closures related to the fire in the park. Please respect all park fire restrictions. Campfires are only allowed in designated campfire rings.

However, an Emergency Forest Closure for portions of the Fremont-Winema National Forest remains in effect. The closure order and maps can be viewed at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/fremont-winema/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD588406 Fire managers want park guests to have a fun and safe experience in the Crater Lake National Park. Visitors should expect to see large firefighting apparatus on roadways. Please drive slowly and use extra caution as fire vehicles may stop in unexpected locations, and if backing, the operator of the equipment may not be able to see smaller passenger vehicles in their mirrors.

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And here’s Monday’s update on the Garner Complex of fires:

Public Meetings: Plans are set for two public meetings for the local communities that are being most effected by the Garner Complex fires. The first meeting will be Monday July 23, 2018 at 6:00 P.M. at the North Valley High School, 6741 Monument Drive, Grant Pass, OR. Another meeting is set for Wimer on Tuesday July 24, 2018 at 6:00 P.M. at Evans Valley Education and Community Center, 8205 East Evans Creek.

Today 50 Oregon National Guard personnel arrived to staff ten road blocks around the clock. Supporting traffic control check points help the public avoid entering active fire areas.

Construction of direct and indirect control lines continues on the Graves fires. Much of the fire is holding within the lines on the north and west flanks, and hose-lays are in place in these areas. Crews worked down each side of the fire tying in reopened roads, hand and dozer lines. Much of the focus on the Grave Fire was to create a fire line across the southern edge to tie in line between the Ditch Fire and the Pleasant Creek fire. The Spencer Fires are subdued with few visible smokes. On the Taylor Fire, because of challenging fire behavior and topography, indirect control line is being built around the much of the fire, by a combination of hand crews and dozers. Some existing roads and old fire lines from previous fires will also be utilized. The smoke inversion kept aircraft grounded most of the day.

OSFM Structure Task Forces were busy today doing triage, assessment, and protection of homes in the evacuation areas. Resources on the fire today are: 70 Hand crews, 26 Aircraft, 100 Engines, 25 Dozer, 38 Water tenders and 2162 personnel. The estimated containment is 14% and size of 11,564 acres.

For most current evacuation information, please contact the Joint Information Center at 541-474-5305 (8 AM–8 PM). A Red Cross Shelter is set up at the Grants Pass High School at 830 NE 9th Street in Grants Pass. 541-474-5710.

For more information on fires across the region and nation: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov

For more information on Central Oregon fires: http://www.centraloregonfire.org/