The Salmon Fire burning outside of Oakridge is being called a “success story” for the fast response of fire crews and its near-complete containment.
Aaron Rowe, an operations section chief currently working the Bedrock Fire, told KLCC Wednesday that the Salmon Fire’s proximity to Oakridge put crews on high alert after it was reported on August 6.
“The Salmon Fire was basically an emerging incident that we quickly tried to get the right crews on it at the right time, as quickly as we could,” said Rowe. “That was a big priority for us to kinda squash that thing as soon as we could. And so now it’s basically on patrol status, and looking really good at this time.”
Rowe added heavy helicopters doing bucket drops helped, and that fire crews dug initial containment lines within a couple days. But Rowe says they won’t declare the Salmon Fire out as there are still some areas of smoke. He figures a “season ending event” will be the time to call it, meaning sometime in the fall when conditions become colder and damp.
As of Wednesday, the Salmon Fire is 135 acres and is 95% contained. Crews are continuing to reinforce containment lines, though most resources are now being concentrated on the Bedrock and Lookout Fires.
There will be a community meeting about the Bedrock and Salmon Fires Thursday night at 7:30 at the Pleasant Hill School Community Center.
