Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Fuels are cured, and conditions are ripe in the Sweet Home area for a large wildland fire, officials say.
Temperatures came down out of the 90s last into the 80s through the week, said Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) Linn Unit Forester Kevin Crowell. Low humidity levels increased the fire danger.
“We are at the point we can have a fire of significant size at any time,” Crowell said. “We’re just asking people to be extremely careful and keep their eyes open.”
Forests protected by the state Department of Forestry, including private timber land and Bureau of Land Management lands, were under Level III industrial use precautions, which means chainsaws and other machinery must be shut down by 1 p.m. every day. Non-industrial use of such machinery is completely prohibited.
Regulated use is in place, limiting campfires to fire rings in designated areas and smoking to vehicles.
“The forecasts are showing maybe some possibility of weather changes (this) week,” Crowell said. Mornings will have cloud cover, but it will burn off quickly.
Fuels will remain dry and cured, Crowell said. The area is not getting enough humidity recovery at night to moisturize fuels.
ODF is starting to pick up roadside and ditch line fires, Crowell said. Small grass fires are a good indication that fire conditions have worsened. Sweet Home firefighters responded to a grass fire in Crawfordsville last week. That fire burned only one-one hundredth of an acre, Crowell said. Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District got onto the fire quickly from its Crawfordsville Station.
“They all have potential now,” Crowell said of small fires. “They’re not staying put for very long.”
They require a quick response from firefighters, and firefighters are relying on the public to help report fires quickly, Crowell said. He asks that members of the public call 911 quickly if they spot fires.
At the same time, fire patrols are actively looking for fires and checking complaints about non-industrial equipment use.
ODF is fighting numerous fires in northeastern Oregon, Crowell said. The fires are in various stages, from uncontrolled to mop-up.
All districts are experiencing daily initial attacks, a run somewhere of some kind, Crowell said. Last week, Linn Unit assisted on a fire in the North Santiam Canyon, along Highway 22.
The Blossom fire in southwestern Oregon had burned some 2,043 acres by the end of the week, Crowell said. It is the largest fire in the state right now.
Sweet Home-area firefighters have assisted on fires in southwestern Oregon and Klamath Falls. As of last week, Sweet Home firefighters were working in LaGrande and Ukiah, south of Pendleton.
Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District firefighters have not been tapped for wildland fires so far this year.
Regulated use restrictions:
– Smoking is prohibited while traveling except in vehicles on improved roads and boats on the water and at designated locations.
– Open fires are prohibited, including campfires, charcoal fires, cooking fires and warming fires, except at designated locations. Only portable cooking stoves, using liquefied or bottled fuels, are allowed.
– Chain saw use is prohibited between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. and at all other hours for non-industrial users.
– Use of motorized vehicles, except motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATV), is prohibited except on improved roads.
– All motor vehicles must be equipped with one gallon of water or an operational 2.5-pound or larger fire extinguisher, one axe and one shovel except when traveling on state and county roads. ATVs and motorcycles must be equipped with one 2.5-pound or larger fire extinguisher except on state and county roads.
– Use of fireworks is prohibited.
– Mowing of grass with power-driven equipment is prohibited between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. except for commercial culture and harvest of agricultural crops.
– Cutting, grinding and welding of metal is prohibited between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. It is permitted during the rest of the day in a cleared area.
Sean C. Morgan can be reached at [email protected] or by phone at 367-2135.