Sean C. Morgan
During the final week of Wildfire Awareness Month, Keep Oregon Green and the Oregon Department of Forestry are urging drivers to keep in mind the rules for driving on forest roads during the upcoming fire season.
A fire can start following only a few seconds of contact between dry grass and a hot catalytic converter or tailpipe, said Kristin Babbs of the ODF. “Most such fires are hard to detect at first. The grass may smolder without smoke for several minutes before bursting into flame, long after you have moved on.”
Vehicles should be maintained well and must stay on designated trails, said Forest Protection Supervisor Neil Miller of the ODF Sweet Home Unit. He is reminding people that drivers must attend an all-terrain vehicles class to ride on public lands.
After fire season starts and regulated use begins, vehicles are limited to improved roads – rock or paved and free of vegetation, on ODF-protected lands, which includes rural areas and forests outside Sweet Home city limits and Bureau of Land Management forests.
Vehicles must carry a gallon of water or a functional 2.5-pound fire extinguisher, Miller said. They also must carry a fire tool, preferably an ax and a shovel.
Drivers violating those requirements face a warning for the first offense, Miller said, and if they are caught again, they face a citation and a $110 fine.
“We keep track of the folks we’ve warned district-wide,” Miller said. Forest officers carry lists of people who have been warned for violations of regulated use.
Before riding, inspect the vehicle’s exhaust to ensure it is undamaged, functioning properly and free of grass and twigs; operate on established roads and trails; park on gravel surfaces or developed roadside pullouts; avoid driving or riding where dry vegetation can contact the exhaust system; never park over tall grass or piles of brush that can touch the bottom of a vehicle; and respect private forest lands and designated closures.
Also, check tire pressure and brake pads and make sure chains or other metal parts aren’t dragging from the vehicle.
Miller also said that people should be aware of fire precaution levels and limits on the use of chainsaws, mowers and weed eaters. During fire season, it’s typically restricted between 1 and 8 p.m., when humidity is lowest and conditions are driest.
“Always be safe,” he said. “Have your machines well-oiled and in working order,” he said.