US Forest Services urges self-policing of campgrounds to help catch, prevent wildfires
Just a few weeks into summer, Central Oregon has already seen a more aggressive fire season than in some past years. The U.S. Forest Service is…
Continue ReadingFire Alert
SW Bend residents help douse small brush fire
Southwest Bend residents used, water, extinguishers and rakes to tackle a small brushfire off Brookswood Boulevard Sunday morning before police and…
Continue Reading
Prineville Fourth of July fire damages home, outbuilding
A fire burned intensely near Meadow Lakes Golf Course Saturday night, damaging a home, outbuilding and power pole, at a time when the city’s Fourth…
Continue Reading
Cigarette butts spark 2-acre wildfire east of Bend, investigators say
A wind-fanned brush fire off Highway 20 east of Bend late Sunday afternoon, stopped at about two acres by firefighters from several agencies, was…
Continue Reading
C.O. fires on the Fourth stopped small; one burns 94 acres in N. Central Oregon
Central Oregon firefighters spent much of the holiday checking on and putting out abandoned campfires or other small blazes, while one to the north…
Continue Reading
BLM expands target shooting restrictions to curb fire danger
PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — U.S. Bureau of Land Management officials have updated the 2020 prohibitions regarding the use of fire-causing materials on…
Continue Reading
New wildfire breaks out near Bessie Butte, south of Bend
A new wildfire broke out late Wednesday afternoon near Bessie Butte, south of Bend, and drew a quick attack in blustery winds, Central Oregon fire…
Continue Reading
ODF’s Central Oregon District enters regulated-use closure on Wednesday
PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Oregon Department of Forestry’s Central Oregon District will enter Regulated-Use Closure beginning at 12:01 a.m.…
Continue Reading
Fire near Columbia Gorge burns 15 acres, prompts Level 1 evacuation notice
A wildfire that broke out Sunday afternoon near the Columbia River Gorge town of Rowena prompted a Level 1 pre-evacuation notice and closed a highway…
Continue Reading
Hwy. 97 driver swerves to avoid deer, crashes, sparks brush fire, power outage
A driver who swerved to avoid a deer crossing U.S. Highway 97 in southern Bend crashed and sparked a brushfire Sunday morning that closed the highway…
Continue Reading
Wildfire season heating up in Central Oregon
A brush fire broke out east of Highway 97 just north of Bend on Friday afternoon, closing the highway for a time until crews could get a handle on…
Continue Reading
Forest Service urges: Keep fireworks off public lands
PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Forest Service officials are reminding all those headed out to public lands this Fourth of July weekend to leave fireworks…
Continue Reading
Deschutes County residents urged to prep for wildfire season
Deschutes County Health Services encourages residents to prepare for wildfire season. With a fire-adapted landscape, it is important to prepare for…
Continue Reading
1,000-acre wildfire east of Madras reaches 60% containment
Firefighters made good progress and reached 60% containment Wednesday of a day-old, 1,000-acre fire on private land about 10 miles east of Madras,…
Continue Reading
Deschutes Natl. Forest raising industrial fire precaution level Friday
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Due to drying fuels and increasing potential for fire starts, beginning this Friday, at 12:01 a.m. the Deschutes National…
Continue Reading
C.O. national forests, BLM to restrict fire use, starting Friday
With a warm, dry spring and a hot summer forecast, the Forest Service and BLM in Central Oregon are implementing public use restrictions, starting…
Continue Reading
Homeowner’s weed burner sparks SW Bend brush fire
Firefighters extinguished a small brush fire in the front yard of a southwest Bend home Thursday afternoon that officials said was caused by a…
Continue Reading
Thunderstorms, lightning spark new, small C.O. fires
Saturday’s intense thunderstorms also hit the region with hundreds of lightning strikes, some of which sparked new, small wildfires tackled by…
Continue Reading
Lightning sparks several small C.O. fires; one grows to 120 acres near Chiloquin
While Central Oregon crews tackled several small lightning-sparked fires on Friday, a larger lightning-caused blaze had burned about 120 acres in a…
Continue Reading
Oregon Dept. of Forestry’s C.O. district to enter fire season on Monday
The Oregon Department of Forestry’s Central Oregon District will enter fire season on Monday at 12:01 a.m. The move affects private, county, state…
Continue Reading