Central Oregon District has published the 2016 Annual Report. The report highlights activities within the District including the 2016 Fire Season, Federal Forest Restoration Program, Private Forests and District Administration.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Pursuant to ORS 477.250, notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held to receive from any interested persons suggestions, advice, objections or remonstrance’s to the proposed budget for the Central Oregon Forest Protection District. A hearing will be held on Wednesday, April 19, 2017, at 1:00 P.M., at the Oregon Department of Forestry – District Office, 3501 NE 3rd Street, Prineville, OR. Copies of...
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David Jacobs, Recently retired Unit Forester in The Dalles Unit [The Dalles, Ore.] In December, David Jacobs, Central Oregon District’s (COD) long time Unit Forester in The Dalles, retired after thirty-five fire seasons with the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF). Many landowners and cooperators don’t remember a time when David wasn’t an integral part of the wildfire protection program. Throughout his tenure David has provided leadership during intense and difficult fire seasons, participated on ODF’s Incident Management Teams statewide, and worked with...
The 2016 Fire Season in ODF’s Central Oregon District (COD) wrapped up October 14th as fall rains and cooler temperatures reduced the risk of large fire growth. At first glance 2016 appears to be a return to “normal” when compared to the historic fire seasons of 2013, 2014, and 2015. Year-to-date, ninety-seven fires have burned 2,456 acres protected by COD. The ten-year average for this time period is 156 fires, burning 11,958 acres. Fuel conditions in May and early June looked as though 2016 would be similar to the previous three fire...
B & M Timber from Burns, Oregon (Brad Clemens) has been nominated for the Eastern Oregon Regional Operator of The Year Award. Each year, the Oregon Department of Forestry selects an outstanding operator from each of the three regions for this award. B & M Timber’s work has consistently exceeded the Forest Practices Act and Forest Practice rules. Their work has demonstrated the ability to handle difficult circumstances, innovation, and extra effort to consistently produce outstanding results. On October 26st a committee consisting of Oregon Department of...
The 2016 Fire Season for lands protected by Oregon Department of Forestry’s (ODF) Central Oregon District (COD) will terminate at 12:01 am October 14, 2016. Powerful winter storms are expected to cross central Oregon starting today, bringing moisture and cooler conditions, reducing the risk of wildfire. “Reducing is the key word,” says Ben Duda, Sisters’ Assistant Unit Forester. “We all need to be cautious and responsible in our activities. Just because fire season is over doesn’t mean things won’t burn.” COD firefighters have responded to...
MH-1 and MH-4 in The Dalles Unit will be moving to Industrial Fire Precaution Level 1 effective October 3, 2016 at 12:00 PM. This means operators can work all day, with a one hour fire watch required following operations. All fire tools and water supplies are still required. Follow this link for the full Closedown Order: IFPL Requirements. Please call Chet Behling, Stewardship Forester in The Dalles for further information, (541)296-4626. ODF's Central Oregon District remains in fire season, with Regulated...
Elden Ward with his badge mounted on his retirement plaque. Elden Ward has been a Stewardship Forester for the Prineville Unit of the Central Oregon District for nearly fifteen years. Elden retired today, and stated his only regret was "Not coming to work for ODF sooner". Elden will be missed by his "ODF Family" and the landowners he helped each day. Kristin Dodd (Prineville Unit Forester) with Elden. Fly fishing tops Elden's plans for retirement, but he also mentioned "doing some forestry stuff". So it is likely we will see him around!
CENTRAL OREGON— Crews in the Maury Mountains are engaged in a fire suppression effort today after a wind event yesterday afternoon pushed a prescribed burn outside planned containment lines. The Ochoco National Forest had been conducting a prescribed burn to improve the natural resources within a 333-acre unit near Elkhorn campground and Forest Road 16. Around 4 pm yesterday, an unexpected reversal of wind direction associated with a storm system from the south pushed fire north of the burn unit and carried it onto private ranch lands. Firefighters are working...
Cooler temperatures and shorter days mark the on-set of fall throughout central Oregon, however the change of the seasons isn’t an indicator of fire danger. Fire danger remains HIGH throughout ODF’s Central Oregon District (COD). The fire risk is primarily due to the lack of measurable precipitation throughout central Oregon for the past several months. The limited moisture has kept fuel conditions dry, especially in the medium and large fuels. Finer fuels such as grass are affected by the unstable weather patterns and can vary throughout the...
Media Alert September 15, 2016 Contacts: Heather Cassaro, City of Redmond Communications Manager, 541-504-3031 Kassidy Kern, Deschutes National Forest Public Affairs, 541-383-5517 On Monday, September 19, 2016 the City of Redmond, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Oregon Department of Forestry will host a ground-breaking ceremony for the new Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch Center (COIDC)...
Pictured: Tom Imeson (Oregon Board of Forestry Chair), Peter Daugherty (new Oregon State Forester), Doug Decker (retiring Oregon State Forester) Contact: Ken Armstrong, Salem, ken.w.armstrong@oregon.gov, 503-945-7420 SALEM – The Oregon Board of Forestry today unanimously selected Peter Daugherty as the next State Forester, concluding a process that began in early May when current State Forester Doug Decker announced plans to retire in October at the end of the current fire season. The Board announced the selection following an executive session to discuss the...
SALEM – The Oregon Board of Forestry today unanimously selected Peter Daugherty as the next State Forester, concluding a process that began in early May when current State Forester Doug Decker announced plans to retire in October at the end of the current fire season. The Board announced the selection following an executive session to discuss the final two candidates, which also included ODF Forest Grove District Forester Mike Cafferata. “The Board is excited to announce Peter Daugherty as the Oregon’s new State Forester,” said Board Chair Tom Imeson. “Peter brings a...
It’s unusual for evergreen trees to turn color in August, or any time of year for that matter, but that’s what we are experiencing in parts of Wasco County. Over the past three years much of Oregon has experienced abnormal levels of water stress and higher than average temperatures. This has resulted in greater tree stress and weaker defensive mechanisms to resist bark beetles. While tree mortality from bark beetles is not uncommon, the number of trees dying is above average for this area. The Oregon Department of Forestry recently conducted an...
Central Oregon – In the past month, Central Oregon has had numerous human caused fires. Now, Oregon State Police along with the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement, Bureau of Land Management, Oregon Department of Forestry and Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office believe that several of those fires were intentionally started. Specific details will not be released while investigations are ongoing. While an investigation by all cooperating agencies is in progress, we would like to urge the public to report suspicious activity on public lands by calling...
This morning MH-4 in The Dalles Unit moves to IFPL 3. A level 3 will mainly affect: -Hot saws are shut down at 1pm and must have an area observer and additional equipment and/or water close by. If using a hot saw please read the attached document (Hot saw req.pdf) AND call me to discuss. Our agency has discussed the idea of restricting hot saws altogether during a level 3, however we have decided that IF the precautions outlined in the attachment are followed closely we can prevent most fire starts; or in the event of a fire, the operator will have the...
August 10, 2016 Contact: Alison Green, Program Director Project Wildfire, FireFree 541-419-1116Deschutes County’s residents in the wildland urban interface (WUI) have been embracing their responsibility of living with wildfire for almost two decades. Now not only is Deschutes County proudly the home to the very first Firewise Community in the state but also to the 100th Firewise Community. Fall River Estates south of Sunriver was the very first Firewise Community in Oregon and Deschutes County twelve years ago. Squaw Creek Canyon...
Crews made significant progress today on the Neal Creek Fire, improving the fireline and mopping-up the interior of the fire. While the fire is producing a light haze in the area, fire behavior is significantly reduced due to today’s suppression activities. David Jacobs, The Dalles Unit Forester, describes the fire as “Looking real good. Today went just like the plan.” The “plan” included getting hose lines all around the fire and plumbing in to the creek at the bottom of the hill, for a continuous water source. Firefighters were able to...
The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for most of the Central Oregon District for scattered thunderstorms producing dry lightning and gusty winds starting later this afternoon. Warm temperatures over the last few weeks have dried fuels and driven ERC (measurement related to how well fuels will burn based on moisture content) to Extreme levels. In preparation for this event the District is bringing in a strike team of engines (five engines and a strike team leader) from western Oregon to work with local District resources. These...
[The Dalles, Ore.] The Neal Creek Fire was reported around 4:00 PM August 4, burning in dense second growth Douglas-fir on steep terrain approximately eight miles south of Hood River. The fire is burning on private land protected by ODF’s The Dalles Unit. SEAT’s and heavy air tankers were used late into the evening to check the spread of the fire and allow firefighters on the ground to flank the fire. Overnight fire crews were able to establish a handline around the perimeter of the fire. Today firefighters will strengthen containment...
More info on the Neal Creek Fire located 8 miles south of Hood River will be updated here. Contact Christie Shaw Central Oregon District Public Information Officer for more info. 541-263-0661 Updated 8:45 PM The Neal Creek Fire was reported earlier this evening burning in dense second growth Douglas-fir on steep terrain approximately eight miles south of Hood River, Oregon in ODF’s The Dalles Unit. The fire is estimated to be approximately 15 acres. Resources on scene include ten fire engines from ODF, BLM and USFS and additional engines from...
[Central Oregon] So far this year fires caused by lightning are significantly less than the ten year average in central Oregon. After the last three challenging fire seasons which started early in the summer firefighters should feel relief, except human caused fires are on the rise both on ODF protected lands and on lands protected by our partners such as USFS, BLM and Rural Fire Districts. August is typically the busiest part of fire season in Oregon and heading into the first weekend the forecast includes lightning. Along with that forecast...
Click Map for Statewide Current Fire Restrictions STATE OF OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY INDUSTRIAL FIRE PRECAUTION LEVEL 3 CLOSEDOWN ORDER Number 03 Effective 12:01 a.m., PDT, July 29, 2016 By virtue of the authority vested in me by ORS 477.625, ORS 477.670, and OAR 629-043-0070, I hereby issue notice the following subject area is susceptible to damage by fire and proclaim Industrial Fire Precaution Level 3 to be in effect: All lands protected by the Central Oregon Forest Protection District, in regulated use area MH-1 and all forestland within one-eighth mile...