Oregon wildfires stretch state’s resources thin

GRANTS PASS, Ore. — Fire crews from around the country have been dispatched to Oregon as 15 large fires burned across more than 565 square miles of timber, rangeland and grass Friday, stretching resources thin.

While crews were still available to attack new fires, no more local crews were available to bolster the 5,000 firefighting personnel battling existing blazes, said Carol Connolly, spokeswoman for the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center in Portland.

With the Northwest the nation’s top priority for firefighting resources, incident management teams were brought in from Montana, Nevada and Utah, and hotshot crews were dispatched from California, Arizona, Idaho, New Mexico, Illinois, Mississippi and Montana, Connolly said.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Mobilized by a state of emergency that Gov. John Kitzhaber declared this week, the Oregon National Guard has deployed four heavy helicopters to help meet the demand for air resources, but no firefighting crews, Connolly said. A helicopter from Grand Canyon National Park was stationed in Joseph for medical evacuations.

Red flag warnings for hot, dry and windy weather were in effect across much of the region, but a cold front was forecast to move through late Friday, bringing cooler, moister air for the weekend.

The bulk of the fires were touched off by lightning storms moving through the drought-parched region last weekend. Three new fires were reported Friday, two of them holdovers from the storms that finally grew enough to be noticed.

Oregon’s top priority was the Shaniko Butte Fire, which has burned across 40 square miles of grass, brush and juniper 12 miles north of Warm Springs. Authorities closed a popular section of the Deschutes River to rafting and other activities after the fire reached the river at the community of Dant on Thursday. The fire was 10 percent contained, with most of the burned area on the northeastern corner of the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation.

At the Bridge 99 Fire in the Cascade Range, 20 miles north of Sisters, top-level evacuation advisories remained in effect for residents of 45 homes along the Metolious River, and residents of 835 homes around Lake Billy Chinook were advised to be ready to evacuate on short notice. Combined with the nearby Bear Butte 2 fire, the Bridge 99 Complex has burned 10 square miles of timber and was just 5 percent contained.

In the Ochoco Mountains, the Waterman Complex fires grew to more than 12 square miles 10 miles northeast of the community of Mitchell. U.S. Highway 26 remained closed at the Ochoco Summit, and top-level evacuation advisories remained for 10 homes along West Branch Road and 12 others in the Marks Creek area. The fires were 35 percent contained.

Near Sprague River in Klamath County, firefighters had the Moccasin Hill Fire 55 percent contained after it burned 4 square miles of private timber. The cause of that fire, which burned 17 residences Sunday in an off-the-grid subdivision, remained under investigation.

Firefighters reported making progress against the Buzzard Complex fires 45 miles northeast of Burns. Those fires have burned 425 square miles of rangeland since they were touched off by lighting Monday.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Everett Historic Theater owner Curtis Shriner inside the theater on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Historic Everett Theatre sale on horizon, future uncertain

With expected new ownership, events for July and August will be canceled. The schedule for the fall and beyond is unclear.

Contributed photo from Snohomish County Public Works
Snohomish County Public Works contractor crews have begun their summer 2016 paving work on 13 miles of roadway, primarily in the Monroe and Stanwood areas. This photo is an example of paving work from a previous summer. A new layer of asphalt is put down over the old.
Snohomish County plans to resurface about 76 miles of roads this summer

EVERETT – As part of its annual road maintenance and preservation program,… Continue reading

City of Everett Engineer Tom Hood, left, and City of Everett Engineer and Project Manager Dan Enrico, right, talks about the current Edgewater Bridge demolition on Friday, May 9, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
How do you get rid of a bridge? Everett engineers can explain.

Workers began dismantling the old Edgewater Bridge on May 2. The process could take one to two months, city engineers said.

Smoke from the Bolt Creek fire silhouettes a mountain ridge and trees just outside of Index on Sept. 12, 2022. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County will host two wildfire-preparedness meetings in May

Meetings will allow community members to learn wildfire mitigation strategies and connect with a variety of local and state agencies.

Helion's 6th fusion prototype, Trenta, on display on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Helion celebrates smoother path to fusion energy site approval

Helion CEO applauds legislation signed by Gov. Bob Ferguson expected to streamline site selection process.

Vehicles travel along Mukilteo Speedway on Sunday, April 21, 2024, in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Mukilteo cameras go live to curb speeding on Speedway

Starting Friday, an automated traffic camera system will cover four blocks of Mukilteo Speedway. A 30-day warning period is in place.

Carli Brockman lets her daughter Carli, 2, help push her ballot into the ballot drop box on the Snohomish County Campus on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Here’s who filed for the primary election in Snohomish County

Positions with three or more candidates will go to voters Aug. 5 to determine final contenders for the Nov. 4 general election.

One dead in Everett crash involving motorcycle and two vehicles

Police shut down the 10300 block of Evergreen Way in both directions during the multi-vehicle collision investigation.

Katie Wallace, left, checks people into the first flight from Paine Field to Honolulu on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Executive order makes way for Paine Field expansion planning

Expansion would be a long-range project estimated to cost around $300 million.

A person pauses to look at an art piece during the Schack Art Center’s 50th anniversary celebration on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett to seek Creative District designation

The city hopes to grow jobs in the creative sector and access new grant funds through the state label.

Former Herald writer Melissa Slager’s new book was 14-year project

The 520-page historical novel “Contests of Strength” covers the 1700 earthquake and tsunami on Makah lands.

The second floor of the Lynnwood Crisis Center on Friday, Feb. 7, 2025 in Lynnwood, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
State budget, legislation could help vacant Lynnwood Crisis Care Center

The two-year operating budget allocates $15 million to crisis centers. Another bill would streamline Medicaid contract negotiations.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.