Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, July 2, 2003
Page 7
Road closed to
prevent spread
of knapweed
The gate at the begin-
ning of U.S. Forest Service
road 4201-142 will be
locked year-round for a
three-year term, according
to Pam Bode, Illinois Val-
ley District Ranger.
This road system is the
site of a large scale spotted
knapweed population and
in addition accesses the
Fall Creek trailhead (4201-
869), as well as one min-
ing claim.
This decision was
made in order to prevent
viable spotted knapweed
seeds located along the
above road systems from
being carried to new loca-
tions via tire tread, vehicle
undercarriages and germi-
nating.
People who would like
to use the Fall Creek Trail
are asked to park at the
Onion Camp Trailhead.
LENDING A HAND - Cave Junction residents Mike Dougherty (left) and Gilbert Van
Tassel (photo above) run toward the Daisy Hill Fire with a shovel and rake to help
fight the flames. The City of Phoenix Fire Dept. (photo right) was just one of several
units from as far as Ashland that responded.
(Photos by Steve Fairchild)
Daisy Hill Fire sparks community support
(Continued from page 1)
help,” he said, complimen-
tary of the firefighters’
efforts. “They appreciated
an extra pair of hands.”
Feldhaus said that
units from Josephine
Count y, other than
IVRFPD, were delayed by
another fire on Riverbanks
Road in rural Grants Pass.
He noted that Oregon
Dept. of Forestry (ODF)
was not up to full seasonal
staff yet, which caused
more delays. U.S. Forest
Service supplemented
ODF crews.
Regarding Meyer’s
house (she was evacuated
prior her home burning),
Feldhaus said that a unit
from the forest service
checked on it after the fire
first began nearby.
“It is my understand-
ing, in talking to the forest
service, that (men from an
engine) did a walk around
(the house) and found
nothing out of the ordi-
nary. Then they came back
and there was fire in the
attic. They were not
equipped to fight that.
“By the time we got
engines over there it was
too late, and we weren’t
going to save it. There
were other houses we had
to save, and that’s one of
toughest decisions you
have to make,” Feldhaus
said.
Lt. Brian Anderson of
the sheriff’s office said
that 25-30 residents from
River Valley Mobile Home
Park at 222 Ollis Road,
and Daisy Hill Road, were
evacuated to Illinois Val-
ley High School, where
they were assisted by the
American Red Cross.
Charles Bridges,
Bridgeview Community
Church pastor, also opened
the church’s doors, where
three evacuees took shel-
ter.
Carly Jones, who has
lived on Daisy Hill Road
only a few months, said
that she and her neighbors
weren’t initially worried
about the fire.
“It was pretty close to
where we were,” she said.
“We could feel the heat.”
But once they saw the
flames rise above the trees
they phoned the fire dis-
trict. Eventually, they
evacuated.
“It seemed like every-
body was pretty calm,”
Jones said of those around
her. “But you could tell
they were (worried).”
Walking door-to-door,
authorities ordered an
evacuation of River Valley
close to 4 p.m., giving resi-
dents 15 to 20 minutes to
leave, said Dan Bailey,
park manager.
“I got my wife to
safety first,” he said before
assisting other residents in
the park.
“We handled a couple
of incidents inside the mo-
bile home park assisting
some invalids,” Feldhaus
said. “But as far as I know
there were no injuries re-
lated to fire.”
Bailey commended the
Red Cross for its effi-
ciency. Volunteers, which
included non-Red Cross
workers from the commu-
nity, had food waiting for
evacuees and brought in
cots in case anyone needed
to spend the night.
Teresa Stover, disaster
volunteer for the Rogue
Valley Red Cross Chapter,
said they also arranged for
evacuees who left their
needed medications at
home to return later in the
evening accompanied by
sheriff’s deputies.
Residents returned to
the mobile home park in
shifts beginning at 9:30
p.m. on Sunday. Anderson
said that most of the
evacuees were back in
their homes by 11 p.m.,
except for one of the fami-
lies whose residence
burned. They stayed in an
area motel courtesy of the
Red Cross.
Illinois Valley fire-
fighters had units on scene
until 3 a.m. Monday. The
state kept units on scene all
night. Crews also worked
through the night until
Monday afternoon at River
Valley attending to hot
spots, Bailey said.
Several River Valley
residents, however, re-
mained in their homes
even after the evacuation
was ordered, he added.
“They just didn’t feel
it was necessary. They
weren’t chickens like me,”
said Dorothy Madison,
who shares a home in the
park with her cousin, Ernie
Krake.
Madison said they
were sitting outside Sun-
day afternoon when Krake
looked up and saw a plume
of smoke. He then noticed
that there was a grass fire
one block away from their
mailbox, and he grabbed a
hose to put it out, while
she phoned IVRFD, Madi-
son said.
“They were here
Johnny-on-the-spot,” she
said, adding that volunteer
firefighter Kathy Mechling
informed her to start tell-
ing people to evacuate to
the high school.
Once she did that,
Madison then went inside,
Word of the
Week
Jactation - An
abnormally restless
tossing of the body.
Shaking, jolting.
Random House
Webster’s College
Dictionary.
Memory, wit, fancy, acuteness, cannot grow
young again in old age, but the heart can.
- Jean Paul Richter -
packed some of her be-
longings, got her puppy
and went to IVHS. Krake
followed her in another
vehicle.
Although threatened
by the fire, Bailey said that
there have been no reports
of any homes in the park
being damaged. Some re-
sidual retardant though,
was left on some of the
homes, he noted. Back
home on Monday, Bailey
and Madison said that they
were glad that no one was
injured in the fire and that
their homes were spared.
“Scary is the word for
it,” Madison said of the
experience. “(After the
Biscuit Fire) we don’t need
this again.”
Though saddened by
the destruction nearby,
Jones was also relieved
her’s and her neighbor’s
homes were OK.
“We were very fortu-
nate that it didn’t burn our
houses,” she said.
A small fire also broke
out on Waldo Road on
Sunday, started by a fallen
power line. It burned a half
acre of brush before two
units from O’Brien extin-
guished the blaze.
-Steve Fairchild con-
tributed to this story.
Closed Tuesday & Wednesday...
is open
Saturdays:
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to
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Hours: Mondays - Saturdays
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For more information phone (800) 922-1025