PORTLAND, Ore. — In addition to Washington, fires continue to burn throughout the Western states. Northwest fire officials told U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that incoming cooler weather could help calm the massive blazes that threaten thousands of homes, but wind storms may cause extreme fire behavior in the interim.
Vilsack, in Portland Friday for a wildfire briefing, said 14,000 homes in Oregon and Washington are currently at risk and the Forest Service is spending $10 million a day for fire suppression in the region.
As the warm weather is being replaced this week by cooler conditions from the Pacific Ocean, the cold front could bring rain to western Oregon this weekend, but the transition to the cold front will also bring strong winds across eastern Washington and northeastern Oregon.
Any break in the weather would be welcomed by weary fire crews.
This year to date, a total of 3,382 fires have burned in Oregon and Washington — with 93 of those categorized as large fires, officials told Vilsack at the briefing. Currently, more than 10,900 firefighters in the region are battling 11 large blazes.
Vilsack said that more and more federal resources are being used to fight Western wildfires.
In 1995, he said, 16 percent of the Forest Service’s budget went toward fire suppression. Today, 52 percent of the agency’s budget is spent on fighting fires. In the next decade, if the trend continues, the agency estimates nearly 70 percent of its budget will go toward wildfire costs.
“No one wants our Forest Service to become one large fire department,” Vilsack said.
That money isn’t spent on forest thinning and other fire prevention projects. Agencies like the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service currently have to borrow funds to pay for such projects.
The problem, Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Vilsack said, is that 1 to 2 percent of the wildfires — the largest ones, which put most property at risk — are eating up a third of the firefighting budget. Since most of those fires were started by lightning, they are natural disasters like hurricanes or earthquakes and should qualify for emergency federal funds, Wyden said.
Under a measure being backed by Wyden, agencies could tap federal disaster funds only if nationwide firefighting costs reached 70 percent of the 10-year average.
Here’s a look at the fires across the rest of the West:
Alaska
A fast-moving wildfire has burned a library and several homes in a small, rural Kodiak Island community.
The fire erupted Thursday night in Chiniak, which is on the eastern side of Kodiak Island. It is uncontrolled and has burned more than 3 square miles.
Kodiak Police Chief Rhonda Wallace said early Friday that people were being urged to evacuate and about 100 had checked in with the department. Two people are staying at a shelter at the Kodiak Middle School.
It’s not certain how the fire began. It’s burning in an area thick with trees and crews are expecting wind gusts of up to 45 mph Friday.
Idaho
People in west-central Idaho near Riggins have been told to evacuate due to a wildfire that expanded to 40 square miles. Nearly 600 firefighters were working to protect structures along U.S. Highway 95 and the Salmon River.
Montana
Fire officials say residents of the Essex area in northwestern Montana could be out of their homes for up to a week, depending on the behavior of a fire that has closed within a half mile of the town on the southern edge of Glacier National Park.
The Flathead Beacon reports about 30 people attended a community meeting Thursday evening, just hours after they were evacuated.
Incident commander Mike Goicoechea told residents the fire was about 120 yards from BNSF Railway’s main line. The rail line and a section of U.S. Highway 2 were closed shortly after the evacuation was announced. The Izaak Walton Inn evacuated its guests and employees.
Oregon
Structural fire crews have returned to protect homes on a wildfire in eastern Oregon as National Guard and other fire crews worked to reinforce lines against winds forecast to be gusting up to 40 mph.
The Canyon Creek Complex fire, which has destroyed more than three dozen homes, covered 135 square miles Friday. The blaze is located south of John Day mostly on the Malheur National Forest.
Spokeswoman Stefanie Gatchell says a cold front bringing rain to western Oregon this weekend will bring thunderstorms and gusty winds to the fire, so crews are working to reinforce their lines.
Smoke made air quality very unhealthy in John Day, but was moderate to good across most of the state.
Meanwhile, the north entrance to Crater Lake National Park reopened Friday after being closed due to a nearby wildfire.
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