Firefighters continue to Secure and
Mop-up Fires and Prepare for More
[John Day, Ore.] No new fires were reported in the John Day
Unit Wednesday. Extended attack on fires
in the John Day Unit have been fully transitioned to mop-up. Today this work will continue as firefighters
prepare for strong winds as thunderstorms pass through the area. Firefighting resources from these fires will
be available to assist in initial attack of any new fire starts today.
Management of the Cottonwood Creek Fire
transitioned to a Type 4 incident commander Wednesday. Crews on the fire continue to grid for smoldering
fuel and extinguish hot spots as they work toward the interior of the fire from
the perimeter. Two hand crews, five wildland
engines, and one water tender are assigned to the fire. The remaining mop-up work is expected to last
several more days.
Resources on the Dissel Creek Fire,
reported Tuesday evening burning five miles southeast of John Day, will
continue mop-up work today. The ~1 acre
fire is staffed with four engines and a squad.
The fire is anticipated to be transitioned to patrol status at the end
of shift today.
Fireline construction is nearly complete on
the 150-acre Cole Canyon Fire.
Yesterday helicopters and Single Engine Air Tankers were used to slow
the spread of the fire, allowing hand crews to build fireline adjacent to the
fire’s edge. This work, along with mop-up
in other area’s of the fire have increased containment to 25%. Today four 20-person hand crews, two wildland
engines, two water tenders, and four skidgines will work to complete the line
around the fire, strengthen the existing fireline, and work to increase the
cold black area between the fire and the fireline. Aircraft is available to assist firefighters
as needed.
A red flag warning has been issued by the
National Weather Service for the area for abundant lightning and gusty
winds. This weather in combination with
severely dry fuels poses a high risk of rapid fire spread.
A Regulated-Use Closure is in effect for the
Central Oregon District to reduce human caused fires. The full proclamation and restrictions are
available at https://gisapps.odf.oregon.gov/firerestrictions/PFR.html. Preventing human caused fires allows
firefighters to focus suppression effort on fires started by lightning. These focused activities result in smaller
fires with less damage to natural resources and communities and fewer impacts
to air quality.
For additional information on ODF’s Central
Oregon District, including contact information and unit offices, please visit www.ODFcentraloregon.com.