Hot and dry conditions are adding to the challenges firefighters are facing as they battle 23 active wildfires throughout Oregon, and wildfire smoke has caused air quality conditions to deteriorate.
A Red Flag Fire Warning alert has been issued for the South Willamette Valley and Central Douglas County. With temperatures reaching into the 90s in the Willamette Valley and Central Oregon, and triple digits in Central Douglas county, fire danger will continue to remain high for the next several days. A combination of atmospheric instability and a dry air mass could lead to significant growth on any new or uncontained fires.
The Chetco Bar fire near Brookings is the state’s top priority and has burned 105,000 acres. Governor Kate Brown toured the area on Friday to survey the damage. Smoky conditions have hindered air operations and residents in Brookings have been under level one “get ready” evacuation orders.
Other fires in Oregon include the Umpqua North Complex Fire east of Roseburg which has burned 15,000 acres. The Jones fire near Lowell has grown to 5,600 acres while the Milli Fire near Sisters has scorched 14,000 acres and is 32% contained. Smoke from the Milli Fire has prompted an air quality alert for Central Oregon.
A new fire was reported Saturday 12 miles west of Riddle. The Horse Prairie Fire quickly grew from 50 acres to 350 acres on BLM and private land.
For the latest fire information visit https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/
