Wildfires and smoke continue to impact Central Oregon
Several wildfires are being attacked aggressively today as dozens of new wildfires were started by the lightning strikes Wednesday evening. Several fires are now over 10,000 acres and continue to grow. The dry air and the dry fuel on the ground needed very little to get a fire going, and this week’s storms provided the energy.
The forecast is not favorable for fire suppression as the region will be hot, breezy and dry. The good news is that the winds will not be overly robust, but they are still present. If you are out and about this weekend, be aware that many of your favorite camping spots may be impacted by wildfires.
The air quality issues will be a concern moving through the weekend as well. In eastern Oregon an Air Quality Alert has been issued by the Department of Environmental Quality through noon Monday. Wheeler, Grant, Harney, Lake, Klamath and Malheur Counties are included in the alert. Air quality indexes will be unhealthy most of the weekend. Central Oregon counties of Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson are not included at this time, but as conditions deteriorate over time that may be revisited by the DEQ.
There are a number of fires that are burning at the moment several are now being placed into "complex" mode, meaning they are combining fires that are closely related to each other geographically and being managed by one command team.
The Rowe Creek Complex is composed of the fires in Wheeler County that have either merged or are close to merging with the Crosswhite fire. Currently this complex is a "mega fire complex" meaning it is over 100k acres.
The Coyote and Conant Fires are being managed by a team newly dispatched and are arriving in Prineville today from California.
The Akawa, Brewer and Pilot fires are being managed together by a single management team, but not deemed a complex as they are far apart from each other.
The other Complex is the Hay Creek Complex north in Gilliam and Sherman counties which is also a "mega fire complex
Monday is expected to be partly to mostly cloudy with a slight chance for a shower. The rain will be light and mainly east, but the clouds will be present in the afternoon. Highs remain above 90° even with the cloud cover. Any rain may be good for the fire suppression efforts, but it may also generate erratic winds that have an adverse effect on fire fighting.
Tuesday will be hot and dry with highs in the middle 90s and mostly sunny. More showers are expected on Wednesday.
Stay hydrated and prepare for poor air quality this week.
Please, Stay safe and smart.
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