Brush fire burns half acre off Green River Road

Kelly Kenoyer

Oregon Department of Forestry and Linn County Fire Department personnel responded to a brush fire Sunday at 3 p.m.

An ODF cruiser noticed some smoke, and upon investigation found the brush fire near the railroad tracks at Osage and 47th Ave, south of Green River Road said Forest Protection Supervisor Chad Calderwood.

“When they got there it was about a quarter acre, so they start engaging it and called in dispatch, so from there we sent a few more engines to help them out until Linn County dispatched the fire department,” Calderwood said.

A total of eight vehicles and 14 firefighters responded to the fire between the state and county.

The city brought in a heavy brush, a water tender, and a smaller engine, while ODF brought in a heavy engine and three light engines, along with the cruise that found the fire.

“It was an acre fire,” Calderwood said. “The fuels are dry enough now that we’re starting to see a little more activity.” He added that the topography and wind both helped the fire spread.

Calderwood said he suspected the fire started due to human activity near the train tracks, but the incident is still under investigation.

Calderwood noted good cooperation between the agencies. “We assist our neighbors, and if we need something they’ll assist us,” he said.

First responders contained the fire within 45 minutes, then spent a while longer “mopping up,” or extinguishing small fires and removing burned materials from within the controlled fire perimeter. The brush fire was the South Cascade District’s first wildfire of the season.

Calderwood suggests there may be more fires coming up in the next few months. “It hasn’t rained,” he said. “We have a lot of grass out there and it’s starting to die out.”

The fire danger level is still low in this area, but Unit Forester Craig Pettinger said that may change soon. He said residents should check the restrictions for the area before camping or doing other activities like mowing dead grass. Mowers start fires all the time, Pettinger said.

“We just kind of restrict the hours they do it,” Pettinger said of mowing. “Don’t do it in the heat of the afternoon, do it first thing in the morning.”

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