As C.O. crews battle on, Red Flag Warning for extreme fire behavior Saturday
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- As hundreds of firefighters continue working to contain several large Central Oregon wildfires, the National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for much of the region for extreme fire behavior Saturday afternoon and evening.
Here are Friday's updates on the Green Ridge, Frog and Warm Springs wildfires:
Green Ridge Fire
August 28, 2020 AM Briefing
Size as of IR flight: 4,338
Containment: 40 %
Start Date/Time: August 16, 2020
5:05 p.m.
Location: Camp Sherman, OR
Cause: Lightning
Personnel: 751
Assigned Resources:
Hand Crews: 26
Engines: 31
Dozers: 5
Water Tenders: 18
Other Heavy
Equipment: 7
Assigned Aircraft: 4
Structure Task Forces:
4
0
Injuries: 1 (bee sting)
Structures
Threatened:
0
Structures
Damaged:
0
Structures
Destroyed:
0
Evacuations: None
For the most current evacuation information,
contact the Incident Management Team
Information Section
(541) 604 8461
staffed 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. daily
Camp Sherman, Ore. – The latest Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping of the Green Ridge Fire shows a total fire perimeter of 4,338 acres, a slight drop from previous reports. Current containment is 40 percent. Evacuation level notifications are no longer in effect. However, the Deschutes National Forest Area Closure remains in place. FS Road 14 and associated campgrounds remain open. For information about evacuation notices and Forest Area Closures go to: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7012/.
A Fire Weather Watch will be in effect today that will bring elevated winds, low humidity and temperatures around 90 degrees. While fire crews continue patrolling and gridding for hot spots along the fire’s edge, removing hazard trees for firefighter safety, and mopping up, they will also be on high alert for potential spotting over lines given the weather forecast. Crews assigned to the Green Ridge Fire are also available to provide initial attack support to the local district and forest on new fire starts within the immediate area.
Fire danger remains extreme across Central Oregon. The firefighting community is asking all residents and forest visitors to exercise caution with all outdoor activities. All open fires, including campfires, wood stoves and charcoal briquette fires are prohibited on the Deschutes National Forest except in designated campgrounds. Open fires are also not allowed on private lands protected by the Oregon Department of Forestry. Visit https://www.oregon.gov/odf/fire/pages/restrictions.aspx for more information and additional public use restrictions.
For the most current fire information, visit https://www.facebook.com/greenridgefire2020/ or contact the Incident Management Team Information Section at (541) 604 8461 between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.
--
Frog Fire Update
Northwest Incident Management Team 8, Incident Commander, Doug Johnson
August 28, 2020 - 9:00 AM
The safety of the public and all wildland fire responders is always the number one priority for all wildland fire agencies. To keep firefighters and communities healthy and safe, all firefighters are asked to follow recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to reduce the spread of illness. This also includes limited entry into the incident command post and spike camp. Please see the websites below or contact the Frog Fire information center at 541-670-0812 for further fire information.
General Updates: Crews on the Frog Fire continue to mop up, strengthen and patrol containment lines on all flanks of the incident. Much of today’s activities will be in preparation for high winds, which are expected tomorrow and included in the fire weather watch for Saturday. High winds, dry fuels and low relative humidity could test containment lines on the fire.
Back hauling of excess equipment from the fire line has begun and fire fighters are working to repair dozer line and resource impacts from fire suppression. As these objectives are met, resources will be release to return home or be reassigned to assist on other fires.
A special reminder to hunters and recreationalists that despite milder temperatures, fuels are extremely dry and readily receptive to ignition. Please do your part to prevent wildfires.
Acreage: 4,020
Containment: 80%
Fire Information: 541-670-0812 (8:00 am to 9:00 PM)
E-mail: FrogWildFire2020@gmail.com
Information Websites:
Twitter: @CentralORFire
Blog Site: http://www.centraloregonfire.org
Inciweb: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7036/
Smoke: oregonsmoke.blogspot.com
Weather: Temperatures will be in the low to mid 80s with relative humidity ranging from 11 to 15 percent. Winds will be northwest 1 to 4 mph in the morning and increasing to 3 to 6 mph by midday with gusts to 11 mph. Big changes will likely arrive by Saturday afternoon and evening as a strong, dry cold front pushes over the fire.
Air Quality: The air quality can change daily; up-to-date information for Oregon is available at oregonsmoke.blogspot.com.
Resources-409: 3-type 2 initial attack crews, 9-type 2 crews, 1-light helicopter, 14-engines, 1-skidgines, 2-dozers, 13-water tenders, and miscellaneous overhead
Evacuations: None
Closures: Several road closures and an area closure have been implemented near the Frog Fire.
The Crook County Sheriff’s Office has closed the following roads:
On the south end:
· Roberts Road at Bear Creek
· Klootchman Creek Road at Bear Creek
· Salt Creek at Roberts Road
On the north end:
· Forest Service Road 16 at the junction of Forest Service Road 1610
A temporary area closure has been implemented by the Ochoco National Forest. For a full description and map of the area closure, please see the above Inciweb link.
Temporary Flight Restrictions: For the safety of firefighters and aircraft fighting the Frog Fire, a temporary flight restriction has been placed over the fire area. Please consult the Notice to Airmen for specifics.
--
Warm Springs fires update: Friday AM
Quick Facts
Incident Summaries
P-515 / Lionshead
Approximate
Size in Acres: 4,609 ac. / 4,866 ac.
Fire
Containment: 70% / 15%
Incident
Commander Eric Knerr
Resources on
the fire:
Crews: 24
Helicopters: 7
Engines: 22
Water Tenders: 10
Dozers: 5
Total
Personnel: 869
Jurisdiction:
Confederated Tribes
of Warm Springs
Oregon Smoke Blog
http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/
InciWeb:
https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7050/
https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7049/
Warm Springs, Oregon - This update is for the P-515 Fire and Lionshead Fire burning on the Warm Springs Reservation. Both fires are being managed for full suppression.
Current Situation: The P-515 Fire is 4,609 acres and 70% contained. The fire lines held again yesterday and crews continue to mop up hot spots.
The Lionshead Fire is now 4,866 acres and 15% contained. Yesterday, in a preemptive action, six loads of retardant were applied on the ridge just west of Lionshead Peak (NW corner of the fire). This action was taken to reduce the intensity of the fire should it crest the canyon and reduce the potential for spotting over the ridge. Containment lines on the north, east and south east flanks continue to hold. All spot fires on the south flank (south of J-200) are now lined.
P-515 Fire: Mop up continues along fire lines and crews will patrol for undetected spot fires. As containment increases, crews are being shifted to support operations on the Lionshead Fire.
Lionshead Fire: The J-440 Road on the north flank and J-100 Road on the east continue to be prepped for containment, with operations including brushing, burnout and mop up. With the spot fires on the south flank now lined, work continues to secure the J-200 road as the primary containment line in that area. Crews and heavy equipment will continue to push further west out the J-200 Road as the fire moves towards Camp Creek Butte. Air operations will continue to target hot spots to slow the fire’s advance and support crews constructing line.
Weather and Fire Behavior: Continued warm and very dry conditions will provide for very active fire behavior today. Tomorrow, a cold front will move across the area bringing increased winds. Because of these winds coupled with the low relative humidity and temperatures in the 80s to lower 90s a Red Flag Warning has been issue from 2 PM to 11 PM on Saturday.
Closures: Trout Lake Road at pavement end; Road B140 at Potter’s Pond; Road B210 and Road P-500. All trails south of Trout Lake, west of M-120 Metolious Bench, east of Mt. Jefferson, and north of J-195 will be closed to the public. Tenino Road (P-200) is closed to the public, with only fire personnel and residents are allowed.
Evacuations: There are currently no evacuations orders associated with the P-515 or Lionshead Fires.
COVID-19: Precautionary measures have been implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19. These measures include daily temperature screenings, mandatory use of face coverings, social distancing, and implementing more virtual work. Public and firefighter safety are a top priority.
Prevention Message: Stop the spread of unwanted wildfires! Prevent Wildfires
