Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Craig Wilson cracked his window just a little bit as he drove down McDowell Creek Road.
“A lot of times, I won’t see the fire,” Wilson said. “I’ll smell the smoke.”
He finds about 75 percent of his fires just from smell of the smoke carried into his rig on the wind, he said.
Wilson is one of three fire patrol officers with the Oregon Department of Forest’s Linn County unit.
Each summer, he scours the valley area from Highway 228 north to the Roaring River area. Jerry Whaley runs patrols in the district south of Highway 228, and Carl Lemmer patrols the Green Peter and Quartzville areas.
“It’s quite a big area,” Wilson said. “There’s a lot of urban interface,” and he stays busy with burn complaints.
His territory includes Snow Peak, Green Peter, Scott Mountain, McDowell Creek, Mountain Home and a number of small woodlands in the valley. The lands include forests owned by Frank Lumber and others managed by Cascade Timber Consulting.
“There’s a lot of grass fires out in the valley,” Wilson said. Many of those start from farm equipment or ATVs and motorcycles throwing off sparks. Others start with lightning. ODF has already put out one lightning fire in the Fairview area this season.
Many fires in the valley are unintentionally caused by humans, Wilson said. Everyday activities, from mowing to weed eating can cause a fire. The potential for a fire is high with the amount of dry grass in the valley.
Recent large fires in the area have included the Overton Gap fire two years ago south of Brownsville and the 60-acre Island Inn fire three years ago.
Dry grass is a light fuel that can burn out quickly, but it also carries fire quickly into heavier fuels, like timber, Wilson said, and those are the biggest wildland fires.
The fire patrols are on lookout for illegal and dangerous fires.
“I write a lot of warnings and a few citations,” Wilson said. “Our mode of operation is we like to warn or educate the public.”
Typically, if he stops for an illegal burn and the person hasn’t been warned in the last three years for illegal burning, he will write a warning. People will receive citations for illegal burns or campfires that escape and cause a fire.
Ninety-five percent of his stops, he just writes a warning, Wilson said. A burn ban takes effect on June 15 and ends Oct. 1 or at whatever date the fire season is pronounced over.
Wilson, 26, whose mother Lupe Wilson is a longtime employee for the U.S. Forest Service Sweet Home District, is in his eighth season with the ODF. He started fighting fires right after graduating from high school.
He heard that fighting fires was a good summer job while attending college from a couple of older friends, Wilson said.
“Your first big fire, you go in, you’re in shock,” he said. “As you get used to it, it’s still exciting.”
Wilson grew up in Sweet Home before attending Oregon State University, where he earned a degree in science. He teaches health and physical education at Sweet Home Junior High. He also coaches high school baseball and basketball.
Wilson also enjoys getting out and seeing other parts of Oregon, places he has never been, when dispatched to help fight fires elsewhere, like Roseburg, Hell’s Canyon and parts of southern Oregon.
On an average day, he spends about half his time patrolling the district, Wilson said. In the early mornings, he will drive by lightning strikes and other places that ODF needs to watch for potential fires.
Wilson especially likes working in the valley area, he said. No matter where a fire occurs in the district, he’s centrally located and will get to respond to the fire.
“I enjoy it,” he said of fire patrol. “It’s a good break from teaching. I enjoy being out. I enjoy fighting fire. Most of the time, fighting fires isn’t a big deal.
“We love to get the fires when they’re small and not let them turn into bigger ones,” Wilson said. With the coverage available in this area, rarely do fires get over 10 acres.
“I like the people I work with,” he said. He enjoys the team atmosphere. When fighting fires, the guys on his team live and work together day and night.
Sean C. Morgan can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 367-2135.