Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Page A-3
Public complicates initial response to Reeves Creek Fire
By
Annette McGee Rasch
IVN Senior Contributing Writer
The Reeves Creek Fire is now 100 percent
contained at 204 acres. It took a bit of time to
get the job done due to steep, difficult terrain
and challenges with vegetation.
“While fire activity died down by the end
of last week, firefighters kept working on hot
spots and remained vigilant in case wind coaxed
the blaze back to life,” said Oregon Department
of Forestry Fire Prevention Specialist Brian
Ballou.
When the fire first flared up in the early
evening on Monday, July 28, many Valley
residents dashed out to get a look at the blaze.
“Our response was delayed because we
had trouble getting through all the traffic,” said
Illinois Valley Fire District Chief Dennis Hoke.
“People need to use some common sense and
stay out of our way.”
“Many have an overwhelming temptation
to get as close to the action as they can to take
pictures and see what’s going on, but we’re
asking the public to resist this urge,” Ballou
said. “And if you’re on the road and see a fire
truck coming behind you, pull over, because
literally, with fast moving brush fires, seconds
count.”
The initial response to the blaze was fast
and furious, with two helicopters and an air
tanker dousing flames until daylight ran out.
About 200 firefighters with six bulldozers
worked through that first night to build fire-
lines around the blaze, located south of Selma
on Reeves Creek Road.
At the height of the fire, 250 firefighters,
five wild-land fire suppression engines, six
water tenders, six bulldozers and numerous
helicopters and tankers were involved in
suppression efforts.
“One of the big issues was that even though
the fire was on the east side of Reeves Creek
road, the land on the west side of the road, in
the canyon, was pre-heating, and the fire just
took off and ran there,” Hoke said. “And the fire
threw embers 1500 feet ahead of the main fire,
starting spot fires.”
At one point the fire was declared 90
percent contained, but in an “unusual move”
that number was revised back to 85 percent,
according to Ballou. Chances for lightening and
strong winds prompted that change.
By Thursday, July 31, the fire’s size was
also revised to 204 acres after bulldozers dug
new fire-line along the west flank, closer to the
fire’s edge. Eleven fire suppression crews and
eleven engines were still “grinding away” on all
the hot spots within 300 feet of the fireline.
“It’s work that requires strong legs and
backs and it’s slow going but essential. Part of
firefighting is putting it out completely,” Ballou
said. “There were a number of areas inside the
fire line that didn’t burn. We were concerned
that those areas could re-ignite.”
“I want to send out a special
acknowledgement to the IV Fire District
volunteers who jumped into quick action to
save homes,” Hoke said.
Hoke also complimented volunteers from
all the fire agencies for the “well-orchestrated”
response that proved invaluable on the first
night of the fire when homes were most
threatened. Seven homes were within or near
the fire’s footprint while dozens more were
located nearby, but none burned. While some
residents were placed on alert, no evacuations
became necessary.
“We had fantastic coordination between
the IV Fire District, Rogue Valley Task Force,
Rural Metro Fire, Grants Pass Fire and teams
from Jackson County that all came together to
protect homes,” Hoke said. “We even had rigs
coming from Ashland. And of course, we really
appreciate the contributions from ODF and the
Forest Service, we couldn’t have done it without
them.”
“That’s the good news,” Hoke said. “The
bad news is that now many of these fire fighting
units are committed to other fires, so if another
bad fire breaks out in the Valley, we may not
receive that level of response and resources.
This is why it’s critical that people don’t
start any new fires, stay clear of fire fighting
zones and focus on creating more defensible
space on their own properties.”
The Reeves Creek Fire, thought to be
human-caused, had a point of origin near an
old quarry, right on the side of the road. An
investigation has been mounted and anyone
with information is asked to contact ODF.
(Photo by Dan Mancuso, Illinois Valley News)
Two helicopters get water from Lake Selmac during the Reeves Creek Fire.
Extreme fire conditions usher in strict fire regulations
By
Annette McGee Rasch
IVN Senior Contributing Writer
The Industrial Fire Precaution Level was boosted to level
3 on Monday and these regulations affect the 1.8 million acres
of state, private, county and Bureau of Land Management
forestlands in Josephine and Jackson counties.
“Very dry conditions in Southwest Oregon’s forests and
wildlands, and the recent outbreak of large wildfires, makes it
necessary to shut down all public use of power-driven and spark-
emitting equipment on all ODF protected lands,” said ODF Fire
Prevention Specialist Brian Ballou.
Chainsaw use, weed-eaters, cutting, grinding and welding
of metal are all prohibited; as is mowing of dried and cured grass
with power-driven equipment, except for the mowing of green
lawns, or the commercial culture and harvest of agricultural
crops. The existing ban on all burn barrel and debris burning
still stands and the use of fireworks, exploding targets, tracer
ammunition or any bullet with a pyrotechnic charge in its base
are also prohibited.
Smoking is prohibited while traveling, except in vehicles on
improved roads; and use of motor vehicles, including motorcycles
and all-terrain vehicles, is prohibited, except on improved roads.
All open fires are prohibited, including campfires, charcoal fires,
cooking fires and warming fires, except at designated locations.
Anyone responsible for starting a fire, accidental or
otherwise, may be liable for damages to neighboring properties
and fire suppression costs that can rise into the millions, according
to ODF officials.
“Inadequate rainfall the past few years, and now, sustained
high temperatures have produced tinder-box dry fuels, creating
conditions that can produce extreme fire behavior that’s even
more dangerous than usual,” Ballou said.
Making matters worse, ODF reports that some of the largest
fires in Southwest Oregon this season have been human-caused.
While lightening starts up to 30 percent of all fires, people have
started a staggering 70 percent of the wildfires in the region, with
the leading cause being debris pile burning.
“Even during the most severe fire danger, we’re still seeing
illegal burning in backyards,” Ballou said. “If people witness
someone burning, call 911 immediately.”
It is especially important, right now, for the public to take
action to ensure their homes are defendable against wildfire; and
while it is too late for homeowners to burn off excess brush, it’s
never too late to create more defensible space around homes.
“During wildfires we assess the homes nearby,” said Illinois
Valley Fire District Chief Dennis Hoke. “We perform ‘structural
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triage’. In other words, we look around to see whether a structure
can be successfully defended and this determines if we’ll put
resources there to make a stand against encroaching wildfire.”
“At the Reeves Creek Fire, some of the homes in the
Wildpark area were categorized as red, which meant we wouldn’t
put any resources there to protect those homes from wildfire,
because it was too risky,” Hoke added. “We’re not going to put
our firefighters at risk to save residences when the occupants
have done nothing to create a defensible space.”
Hoke explained that a “red” home might have firewood
piled against the house, trees touching or near the house, dried-
out brush or significant amounts of ladder fuels in the immediate
area of the structure. He said people should have at least 30 feet of
defensible space around their homes. And, for homes on slopes,
the amount of defensible space needed increases exponentially,
depending on steepness of the slope.
Defensible space means roofs and rain gutters are kept free
of needles and leaves and landscaping near homes is managed to
reduce fire danger. It’s recommended that people start with their
house and work outward - removing fuel sources close to the
house, including gas cans, chemicals, organic mulch, dried-out
grass and weeds, needles on the ground, juniper bushes or any
other flammable plants.
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