| 2005 Monthly Update - Fire Conditions |
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| July, 2005 |
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Fires burning as of July 28, 2005:
Wasson Fire: The Wasson Fire grew to approximately 650 acres last night, making runs through steep, rugged canyons and dense forest. Most of fire activity was on the east and northeast flanks of the fire. Structures and a tiger sanctuary east of the fire are threatened. The Lake Creek Fire Rural Protection District is positioning its engines in those areas.
Lead planes from the federal fleet are assisting Oregon Dept. of Forestry's firefighting effort on the Wasson Fire. The federal lead planes are guiding the state-contracted air tankers into their drop zones.
The Wasson Fire is 50 percent contained. It is unknown when the Wasson Fire will be fully contained. Unfavorable weather conditions are contributing to the fire’s continued advances. Today, high temperatures near 100, up canyon winds in the afternoon hours, and low relative humidity will favor continued advances by the fire.
An Oregon Department of Forestry incident management team, headed by Incident Commander Jim Walker, is taking control of battling the fire this morning. Three hundred firefighters are assigned to the Wasson Fire, and a fire camp is set up at Touvelle State Park.
Resources assigned to the Wasson Fire include 8 helicopters and 3 air tankers, including one ODF air tanker is enroute and the other which is waiting for the inversion to lift. Engines, crews and fire management personnel and equipment are provided by the Oregon Department of Forestry, Douglas and Coos forest protective associations, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, Lake Creek Rural Fire Protection District and several contractors.
Fire severity funds, special funds allotted by the Legislature to allow for pre-positioning of crews and equipment in areas facing severe fire danger, have proved highly useful on this fire. Air tankers funded through this method are dropping fire retardant on the fire.
Blossom Complex: Coos Forest Protective Association continues its work with the federal incident management team that is responsible for the Blossom Complex of fires, which is burning on federal land in the lower Rogue River canyon. The Coos personnel are working to ensure that the federal team is adequately addressing the threat to private land. These concerns involve commercial forestland as well as lodges on the Rogue River including the historic Paradise Lodge located just downstream of Blossom Bar.
Fire managers would like to remind residents of the fire danger currently facing southwestern Oregon and to use extreme caution when working or traveling through wildland areas.
Fire Statistics From This Year
FIRE STATISTICS (Dept. of Forestry protected lands):
Jan. 1 to July 28, 2005
Lightning-caused fires - 43 fires burned 8 acres
Human-caused fires - 240 fires burned 537 acres
Total fires - 283 fires burned 544 acres.
Jan. 1 to July 28, 2004
Lightning-caused fires - 133 fires burned 88 acres
Human-caused fires - 399 fires burned 493 acres
Total fires - 532 fires burned 581 acres.
Links and Information
SAFETY TIPS
For firefighter safety tips, go to http://www.nifc.gov/sixminutes/dsp_sixminutes.php
WEATHER
Current fire weather information
http://egov.oregon.gov/ODF/FIRE/fire.shtml#Weather_Forecasts___RAWS_Data
FIRE INFORMATION
To simplify the process for news media to obtain fire information after business hours and on weekends, the ODF Agency Affairs Office has established a pager number: (503) 370-0403. The fire information duty officer will return media calls promptly. On weekdays during business hours, media should continue to contact the ODF headquarters office for fire information (503) 945-7200.
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