Oregon on track to set new wildfire record for acreage burned

The wildfire season in Oregon has likely not yet peaked and already 1.3 million acres have been blackened or are ablaze, with 34 large fires burning.

And five of them have spread over 100,000 acres each.

“We are on a trend of possibly setting a record in the state of Oregon for the number of acres affected by fire,” Carol Connolly, a spokesperson for the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center, which coordinates fire resources, told the Capital Chronicle. “Typically the Northwest peaks around Aug. 14, so we still have a while to go in this fire season.”

Since 1992, when the center started tracking burned acreage, only the 2020 Labor Day Fires came close, with about 1.2 million acres burned in 11 counties. But those blazes were much more destructive to communities, killing nine people and destroying more than 5,000 homes.

This year, the fires have destroyed at least 30 homes and more than 60 other structures, with hundreds of buildings remaining under threat. One death has been reported this year: Air tanker pilot James Bailey Maxwell, 74, died while working in the vicinity of the Falls Fire on July 25.

The wildfires have prompted Gov. Tina Kotek to declare a statewide emergency and ask for federal help and regulatory flexibility for farmers and ranchers. She’s also invoked the Conflagration Act nine times. The most recent was on Monday for the Elk Lane Fire, which has burned nearly 5,100 acres northwest of Madras in Jefferson County. She also invoked the act last Thursday for the Telephone Fire in Harney County, which has scorched more than 50,000 acres northeast of Burns. It is threatening more than 150 homes and about 350 smaller structures, with evacuation orders in place.

“Conditions are prime for high fire activity today, and the fires continue to test our crews’ fortitude and resilience, but lines are holding,” the Harney County Sheriff’s Office said in a Tuesday update on Facebook.

Kotek’s invocation of the Conflagration Act allows the state fire marshal to unleash resources to protect homes and people threatened by the Telephone Fire, which the sheriff’s office said is likely to remain active on Tuesday.

The weather across much of Oregon has been cooler in recent days but the forecasters predict hotter and drier conditions later this week.

“Ongoing incidents will see increasing areas of active fire behavior as both cloud cover and surface moisture is transported away this week,” the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center said in a morning briefing.

The fires have prompted the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to issue air quality alerts, with the most recent one on Monday when DEQ warned residents of unhealthy, smoky conditions in eastern Douglas, Grant, northern Harney, northern Klamath, eastern Lane, northern Malheur, and eastern Wheeler counties. Officials also said that people in Crook, Deschutes, Jackson, Jefferson, Josephine, and Lake counties could face intermittent smoke, which can irritate the eyes and lungs and worsen some medical conditions. Children and older adults along with those who are pregnant or have heart or lung disease are especially at risk.

Connolly of the coordination center said Tuesday that in Oregon, the Diamond Complex of nine fires that have scorched more than 6,600 acres east of Roseburg in the Umpqua National Forest is a top priority. It threatens four houses, 70 mixed commercial and residential buildings, and 39 small structures along with utility services and access to Crater Lake along Highway 230.

Officials have deployed more than 550 people to the fires along with four helicopters to fight the blazes from above. It could take until mid-October to snuff the blazes, the coordination center said.

Among the five fires over 100,000 acres, the Durkee Fire in Baker and Malheur counties remains the biggest in Oregon. It has burned nearly 295,000 acres and destroyed four homes and 19 other structures. It is now 86% contained, which means firefighters have stopped the spread on most of the perimeter.

The Battle Mountain Complex of four fires west of Ukiah has scorched more than 188,000 acres. The fires have destroyed seven homes and 10 other structures and are 39% contained.

The Northwest Interagency Coordination Center said on Tuesday: “Crews will continue mop-up operations around the entire perimeter of the fire.”

The Falls Fire northwest of Burns has burned more than 146,000 acres and is 75% contained. The fire is running through timber and evacuation orders are in effect, the coordination center said, with road and trail closures in the area. The fire has destroyed 13 homes and 15 other structures.

The Lone Rock Fire southeast of Condon has burned more than 137,000 acres and is 92% contained. The Gilliam County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook on Tuesday that the acreage blackened is not likely to grow, with a few acres in forestland in Wheeler County “proving difficult to contain.”

“However, the fire crews in those areas are working hard to ensure any activity is contained within the already burnt areas of the landscape and will not become an external threat to the areas,” the sheriff’s office said.

And the Cow Valley Fire in Malheur County northwest of Ontario, which scorched more than 133,000 acres, is now 99% contained. It destroyed two homes and five smaller structures.

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Multiple Northwest wildfires likely to burn until fall rains arrive

Firefighters are actively battling many wildfires currently burning in Washington and Oregon. With widespread lightning expected this month, fire managers will be adopting a strategic approach to integrate risk management, ecosystem resilience, and community involvement on long-duration fires before typical east wind events potentially arrive around the beginning of fall.

“Our planners are taking a realistic look at current wildfires, expected new fires, and the resources we have to help us safeguard human lives and property while enhancing our ability to respond to wildfires in high-risk areas,” said Jacque Buchanan, Regional Forester for the Pacific Northwest Region of the Forest Service.

Among other tactics, firefighters working long-duration wildfires will focus on identifying and preparing a network of primary and contingency containment lines to help stop fires as they approach critical areas like communities, powerlines, water supply systems, and natural and cultural resources.

“Firefighting is inherently risky. Our role as fire managers is to develop strategies that maximize success while minimizing the risk of injury or death to emergency responders,” said Kelly Kane, Acting Fire, Fuels and Aviation Director for the Pacific Northwest and Alaska Regions. “There is no structure that is worth the life of the sons, daughters, parents, siblings and friends that make up our wildland firefighting workforce.”