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Oreg File
138th Year, No. 17
Wednesday, September 7, 2022
WALLOWA.COM
53,000 ACRES AND CLIMBING
Peggy
Reeves
Joseph
Often a
snowbird,
she’ll stay
this year
JOSEPH — Peggy Reeves has
found a new home in Joseph after
decades elsewhere in Oregon.
She’s lived in Joseph for only a
year, moving here after a year in
Enterprise to be close to her daugh-
ter and son-in-law. Prior to Enter-
prise, she lived in Bend for many
years, having worked there in a CPA
offi ce for about 25 years.
She has many favorite things
about Wallowa County, particularly
the people and the scenery.
“Except that it’s cold in the win-
tertime,” she said with a laugh.
She doesn’t have any big plans
before summer ends. She usually
joins her daughter and son-in-law
spending the winter in Florida, but
doesn’t think she will this year.
“I don’t think I’m going to go
this year,” she said. “I’m going to
stay here and do very little snow
shoveling.”
She doesn’t plan on any winter
sports.
“I’m retired from that, too,” she
said.
Reeves expressed strong con-
cerns for the victims of the hail-
storm in Wallowa.
“We just missed that by a hair,”
she said. “I’m glad our church — the
United Methodist Church — has
been able to help by sending things
down there and helping when they
can.”
Closer to home, Reeves is
pleased with the sidewalk work
being done in Joseph.
“I think that’s wonderful,” she
said. “We need to have places for
people to walk. We have a lot of vis-
itors. … There’s so much to do here.”
The rain the county has experi-
enced has allayed her concerns for
wildfi re season.
“You just do the best you can,”
she said.
When it comes to others who
might consider making Wal-
lowa County their home, Reeves
acknowledges that the county is
bound to grow.
“You can’t get away from that,”
she said.
— Bill Bradshaw,
Wallowa County Chieftain
Double Creek
Fire, state’s largest
fi re, was active
on Labor Day
Wallowa County Chieftain
NTERPRISE — The largest wildfi re in
Oregon was an active one on the Labor
Day holiday.
Fire activity increased on the south-
ern end of the Double Creek Fire near
Freezeout Road, and fi refi ghters and task
forces from the State Fire Marshal imple-
mented structure protection and activated
sprinklers installed around homes in the area.
The Double Creek Fire has burned 53,539
acres, according to the Tuesday, Sept. 6,
update. The blaze is still zero percent con-
tained, and there are 580 personnel assigned
to fi ght the fi re.
According to a press release from the Type
1 overhead team that’s managing the Double
Creek Fire, tactical fi refi ghting aircraft were
not able to assist fi refi ghters on the ground
Sept. 5 due to gusty northwest winds and an
inversion over the area. Firefi ghters will spend
Sept. 6 evaluating the fi re along the Freezeout
Road, and State Fire Marshal resources will
continue to protect structures in the area.
“They’re not calling it contained, but they
have a lot of control lines in place,” said
Brentwood Richardson, a public information
offi cer with the Type 1 team in Joseph.
He said Sept. 6 that a high-pressure ridge
was coming in that afternoon and thunder-
storms were expected Sept. 7-8. A red fl ag sit-
uation would be from 6 p.m. Sept. 6 through
8 p.m. Sept. 7, meaning the potential for rapid
fi re growth.
“They’re doing a good job of holding the
fi re east of the (Imnaha) river,” he said.
One of the concerns is fi nding a place to
construct bulldozer lines as fi rebreaks in the
Imnaha Canyon country, since the ridges
there run north to south. Dozer lines would
best be constructed on east-west ridges, of
which there are few in the area.
State Fire Marshal task forces will also
support fi ring operations along the Imnaha
River. Fire crews will continue dozer and
hand line construction above the powerline
along the Imnaha River corridor and continue
fi ring operations to keep up with fi re spread
to the north.
On the north end of the Double Creek
Fire, fi refi ghters will scout for opportunities
to construct a control line. State Fire Marshal
resources will develop a structure protection
plan for the town of Imnaha.
The Double Creek Fire, which was caused
by lightning, is a “full suppression” blaze,
E
Inciweb/Contributed Photo
A very large air tanker provides active fi re suppression on the Double Creek Fire in Wallowa
County on Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022.
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
The Thunder Room at the Chief Joseph Days Rodeo Grounds in Joseph has been turned into a
command center for the Double Creek Fire and the Eagle Cap Wilderness fi res nearby.
which means offi cials are trying to douse it as
soon as possible.
Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 evacuations
have been issued by the Wallowa County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce. A Level 3 “Go Now” is in
MORE INSIDE
Two local restaurants took it upon them-
selves to help battle the wildfi res in Wal-
lowa County, but not on the fi re line — by
feeding some 300 fi refi ghters. Page A3
See Fire, Page A10
Wallowans urged to submit damage info Moisture,
Residents gather for
emergency meeting
on storm damage
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
WALLOWA — Wallowa res-
idents whose property was dam-
aged in an Aug. 11 hailstorm were
urged to quickly fi ll out forms giv-
ing as much detail as possible on
what would become their claims
during an emergency meeting
of the Wallowa City Council on
Thursday, Sept. 1.
More than 100 Wallowa res-
idents turned out to hear what
local, state and federal offi cials
are trying to do to help them
rebuild in the wake of the hail-
storm that left many buildings
and vehicles seriously damaged.
“We need more information
on your needs,” said Kathleen
Cathey, a fi eld representative for
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden.
Cathey advised residents to
complete the forms distributed
at the meeting as soon as possi-
ble, as there is a two-week dead-
line to get them in. However, if
the forms aren’t complete, she
said, additional information can
be added later.
Elected offi cials helping
Wallowa County Commis-
sioner John Hillock was pres-
ent at the meeting and noted that
state Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Ath-
ena, and state Rep. Bobby Levy,
R-Echo, are actively seeking help
for the community. Mayor Gary
Hulse said he had contacted the
state Offi ce of Emergency Man-
agement two days after the storm,
and that afternoon he heard from
Gov. Kate Brown’s offi ce. Hulse
also has asked for a public infor-
mation offi cial to help him and the
city’s recorder, Carolyn Harsh-
fi eld, fi eld the many telephone
calls they’ve been handling since
the storm.
Cathey said that as Hulse and
Harshfi eld are trying to answer
questions over the phone “for 850
people, one every 15 minutes,
somebody’s going to get missed.”
She agreed support was
widespread.
“You have captured the atten-
tion and support of everybody in
Oregon,” she said.
Contractors ready
Construction contractors also
were there to off er advice and pre-
pare to repair and rebuild homes.
Will Lehr, of Enterprise, who
previously lived in Wallowa, is
a recently retired general con-
tractor who was organizing other
contractors to come to the aid of
Wallowa.
Several contractors cautioned
residents not to be taken in by
those who may promise more
than they would deliver.
“We’d rather underpromise
and overperform,” one of the con-
tractors said. “That way we’ll be
friends with you.”
Lehr assured those in atten-
dance that each of the about 10
contractors present was profi cient
in at least one area of construc-
tion. Another contractor noted
that since he is primarily a roofer,
if there’s someone who largely
focuses on siding it would be best
to subcontract to that contractor.
“That way we’ll get it all done
quicker,” he said.
An insurance agent also urged
property owners to make sure
any contractor they deal with is
licensed in Oregon. Some may be
licensed in multiple states, but it’s
critical they also be licensed to
work in Oregon.
One member of the audience
asked if the nearby Boise Cas-
cade mill in Elgin could be pre-
vailed upon to sell plywood at
cost to residents. Hulse said the
mill already had donated a con-
siderable load.
The contractors also addressed
the concerns of property own-
ers who are overwhelmed by the
detailed paperwork and bureau-
cracy of dealing with insurance
companies.
“That’s our job,” Lehr said.
“We know how to do that.”
cooler temps
boost yields
See Damage, Page A10
See Growers, Page A10
Growers relieved
at passing of last
year’s drought
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
WALLOWA COUNTY — As
summer winds down, so does
harvest time for small-grains
producers. Growers this year are
increasingly fi nding their harvest
much more bountiful than last
year.
The main reason for this, many
say, is the increased moisture this
past spring.
Tim Melville, of Cornerstone
Farms Joint Venture near Enter-
prise, said Wednesday, Aug. 31,
that with all the moisture last
spring, the crops are far from the
“disaster” of last year.
Last year’s drought and higher
temperatures meant some of his
dryland wheat yielded only 7-12
bushels per acre.
“We shouldn’t have cut it, but
we did,” he said. “It cost more to
cut it than we got out of it.”