Illegal, abandoned campfire sparks 3-acre blaze near Walton Lake; Cedar Creek Fire tops 7,000 acres
PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) – An abandoned, illegal campfire sparked a wildfire Sunday north of Walton Lake on the Ochoco National Forest that firefighters stopped at about three acres, authorities said Monday.
Crews responded around 2:30 p.m., to the Sheep Corral Fire, off Forest Road 2630, about a half-mile north of Walton Lake.
“Do your part to prevent human-caused wildfires!” fire officials urged in the Twitter report on the blaze.
Meanwhile, the Cedar Creek Fire near Waldo Lake has surged to over 7,000 acres. Here's Monday morning's update on that fire and the Windigo, Potter and Big Swamp blazes:
Cedar Creek Fire - August 22, 2022
Size: 7,012 acres
Contained: 0%
Start Date: August 1, 2022
Location: 15 miles E of Oakridge, OR
Cause: Lightning
Total personnel: 788
Resources:17 engines
16 crews
41 heavy equipment
6 helicopters
Current Situation: Cedar Creek Fire was active within the perimeter Sunday afternoon due to the higher-than-normal temperature and lower relative humidity. Helicopters were busy most of the day cooling hot spots with water drops as smoke columns could be seen across Waldo Lake and Hills Creek Reservoir. Careful aerial firing within Waldo Lake Wilderness continued in the unburned area between the eastern tip of the fire and the lake in preparation for hand crew operations. Night crews continued firing operations north on Black Creek Road. Heavy equipment crews continued improving roads and trails to the south and west of the fire as alternate lines.
Today’s Activities: Today handcrews will assess a safe location to establish a spike camp for firefighters and equipment on the east side of the fire along the western edge of Waldo Lake within the Waldo Lake Wilderness. Once located, they will establish camp and use helicopters to sling in pumps and water hoses and personal protective gear to establish a fireline line south toward Edith Creek using tactics that suppress the fire close to the fire’s edge with minimal impact to the wilderness. Tactics will include utilizing small pumps and hoses and local water sources along with some handline for the suppression efforts. Heavy equipment crews continue improving primary and secondary firelines on roads throughout the fire area. Fireline construction along Forest Roads 1928 and further south to State Highway 58 will continue for several days. Firecrews and helicopters continue suppression on the 5-acre Slapjack fire with fireline construction and a small access road.
Huckleberry Flats OHV Park is closed to provide access for firefighters and equipment working within the area.
Virtual Community Meeting: A virtual community meeting is planned for Tuesday August 23rd at 7:00pm and will be streamed live on the Cedar Creek Fire Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CedarCreekFire2022
Evacuations: Currently, there are no evacuations in place.
Weather: Fire activity may pick up in the afternoon with low relative humidity anticipated to be 30-35% in the afternoon and possible wind gusts from the west up to 15 mph. Closures: An Area Closure is in place for the Cedar Creek Fire. This includes all trailheads and dispersed camping west and north of Waldo Lake. The lake itself, campgrounds, and trails (including the PCT) on the east side remain open. A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place.
Restrictions: Fire restrictions are in place on the Willamette National Forest with the exception of the Three Sisters, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Waldo Lake, and Diamond Peak Wilderness areas.
Smoke: Smoke Forecast Outlooks are available at https://outlooks.wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlook.
Fire Information: Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM | Phone: 541-201-2335 | Email: 2022.cedarcreek@firenet.gov | Online: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8307/ | https://www.facebook.com/CedarCreekFire2022/ | https://www.facebook.com/willamettenf | https://twitter.com/willametteNF | YouTube: https://www.tinyurl.com/cedarcreekfireyoutube
Potter, Windigo, Big Swamp Fires Daily Update for 8/22/22
Potter Fire Wildfire
News – 6 hrs. ago
Fire Information Phone: 541-625-0687 (8am - 7pm)
Email: 2022.Windigo@firenet.gov
Potter Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8291/
Windigo Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8292/
Big Swamp InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8323/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WindigoPotterBigSwampFireInfo/
Weather: Temperatures around 90 degrees are expected in the lowlands and mid to upper 80s on the ridges with humidity in the teens. Better humidity recoveries are expected tonight along with slightly milder conditions in the lowlands. Another warming and drying trend is still expected through at least Thursday before conditions potentially moderate.
Big Swamp Fire: Minimal fire behavior was reported on the Big Swamp fire yesterday. Sprinklers systems placed along the 2153 Road mid-slope have been successful in holding the fire. Firefighters continue mop-up operations and are patrolling the fire perimeter looking for hotspots.
Potter Fire: The fire made progress backing down to the established control lines on the 269 road. With favorable weather conditions, firefighters are performing small tactical burns to clean up unburned pockets of fuel along firelines. Chipping and hazard tree abatement is proceeding along the remaining edges of the fireline. Smoke may be visible from interior islands of debris and vegetation as fuels are slowly consumed.
Camel Hump Fire: A new lightning-caused fire that started in the Boulder Creek Wilderness will now be managed by NW Team 10. A coordinated response between firefighters on the ground and air resources are working to suppress the Camel Hump Fire. The fire is estimated at less than 10 acres.
Windigo Fire: A designated repair group is working on the Windigo Fire to complete repairs on roads, trails, and dozer lines that were utilized by firefighters. Resource Advisors continue to work closely with fire crews in an effort to repair and minimize the impacts to the land. The fire remains in patrol status.
Resources: 23 hand crews, 15 engines, 6 dozers, 6 water tenders, 2 helicopters. Total personnel 761.
Closures: For firefighter and public safety, follow the Big Swamp, Windigo, and Potter Fires. Additional Potter Fire Road Closure – https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/umpqua/alerts-notices
Pacific Crest Trail – visit https://www.pcta.org/discover-the-trail/closures/oregon/ for more information.
Public Safety: As fire activity diminishes, hazards from fire effects and suppression activities remain. Crews and equipment continue to use roads for both suppression and post-fire suppression repair. Activities like brushing and chipping along roadsides and falling trees remain hazards on the landscape. You can help keep firefighters and the public safe by adhering to the closure orders until they are officially lifted.
Windigo Fire
Acreage: Approx. 1,007 acres
Containment: 96%
Location: 20 mi SW of La Pine, OR
Cause: Lightning
Potter Fire
Acreage: Approx. 619 acres
Containment: 72%
Location: 8 mi NE of Toketee Lake
Cause: Lightning
Big Swamp
Acreage: Approx. 110 acres
Containment: 57%
Location: 6.5 mi N of Lemolo Lake
Cause: Lightning
