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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 26, 2015)
Wildfires Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, August 26, 2015 FIRE Continued from Page A1 Photo by Colin Murphy for the Blue Mountain Eagle A backburn is set by wildland firefighters for structure protection. Fire¿ghters ZorN to contain Canyon CreeN, 2 other ¿res Nancy McCarthy Blue Mountain Eagle 7KLVLVWKHWLPHOLQHIRUWKH days following the initial out- break of the Canyon Creek &RPSOH[¿UH Wednesday, Aug. 19: 1XPEHU RI KRPHV GH- VWUR\HG 0RUH WKDQ RWKHUVWUXFWXUHVZHUHGDPDJHG DQGPRUHWKDQZHUHWKUHDW- HQHG 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG ZLWKSHUFHQWFRQWDLQ- PHQW 3HUVRQQHO ¿JKWLQJ WKH ¿UH LQFOXGLQJ WZR 7\SH FUHZVWUDLQHGWRKDQGOHPDV- VLYHZLOG¿UHV (YDFXDWLRQ /HYHO UH- PDLQHG 6RXWK IURP 'RJ &UHHN WR /LWWOH 'RJ &UHHN DV ZHOO DV WKH XSSHU HQG RI 3LQH &UHHN &DQ\RQ &UHHN IURP WKH ¿UH SHULPHWHU north at Canyon City, south to the 15, 16 junction also UHPDLQHG XQGHU D /HYHO HYDFXDWLRQ *RY .DWH %URZQ PHW ZLWK ¿UH¿JKWHUV WKDW DI- WHUQRRQ 6KH DQQRXQFHG that the Oregon National Guard would be called in to KHOS Thursday, Aug. 20 )LUH¿JKWHUVEUDFHGIRU PSKZLQGJXVWVDQGGXJLQWR SURWHFWWKH¿UHIURPVSUHDGLQJ WR 6HQHFD ZKLFK ZDV SODFHG RQD/HYHOHYDFXDWLRQ 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG DFUHV ZLWK SHUFHQW FRQWDLQPHQW 7KH¿UHKDGMXPSHG5RDG DQGKHDGHGWRZDUG%XW- WHUÀ\6SULQJVDERXWWZRPLOHV north of the old Parrish Cabin EXUQ $ /HYHO HYDFXDWLRQ ZDV SODFHG RQ WKH DUHD ZHVW RI &RXQW\ 5RDG VRXWK RI PLOHSRVWDQGQRUWKRI)RU- HVW5RDGWRWKHMXQFWLRQRI )RUHVW5RDGVDQG +LJKZD\ UHPDLQHG FORVHG Friday, Aug. 21: 7KH-HUU\¶V'UDZ¿UHZDV FRQWDLQHG ,PPHGLDWH HYDFXD- tions ordered for another KRPHV IURP 8SSHU 3LQH &UHHNDQG8SSHU'RJ&UHHN as winds shifted out of the VRXWKZHVWSXVKLQJWKHEOD]H EDFN QRUWKHDVW ZKHUH ¿UH- ¿JKWHUV KDG DOUHDG\ HVWDE- OLVKHGD¿UHOLQH 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG Monday, Aug. 24: ZLWK SHUFHQW FRQ- 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG WDLQPHQW 1XPEHURI¿UHSHUVRQQHO DFUHV ZLWK SHUFHQW GRZQIURPDKLJKRI FRQWDLQPHQW 1XPEHURI¿UHSHUVRQQHO )LUH¿JKWHUV ZHUH DEOH WR FRPSOHWHD¿UHOLQHDURXQGWKH )LUH¿JKWHUV VSRWWHG DQ- -HUU\¶V 'UDZ ¿UH VXSSUHVVLQJ VHYHUDOVSRW¿UHVDVWKH\DURVH RWKHU ¿UH PLOHV QRUWKHDVW • Evacuation levels were RI 3UDLULH &LW\ 7KH )URJ UHGXFHGRUOLIWHGLQVRPHDUHDV 3RQG¿UHZDVHVWLPDWHGDW +LJKZD\ RSHQHG DFUHVDERXWPLOHVVRXWKRI ZLWKSLORWFDUVOHDGLQJYHKLFOHV *UHHQKRUQ 7KHQXPEHURIKRPHVGH- RXWRIWKH¿UH]RQHGXULQJWKH +LJKZD\RSHQHGXQ- VWUR\HG UHVWULFWHGGD\DQGQLJKW GD\RQO\ 7KH QXPEHU RI DFUHV Sunday, Aug. 23 Tuesday, Aug. 25 EXUQHG ZLWK SHU- 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG 1XPEHURIDFUHVEXUQHG FHQWFRQWDLQPHQW 7KH-HUU\¶V'UDZ¿UHRQ ZLWK SHUFHQW FRQ- ZLWK SHUFHQW FRQ- WDLQPHQW 'L[LH 0RXQWDLQ IRXU PLOHV WDLQPHQW 1XPEHURI¿UHSHUVRQQHO 1XPEHURI¿UHSHUVRQQHO north of Prairie City, broke out DQG EXUQHG DFUHV 6RPH 'URSLQQDWLRQDO¿UHSULRU- )URJ3RQG¿UHFRQWDLQHG UHVLGHQWV ZHUH SXW RQ /HYHO DWDFUHV 2 evacuation; others were on LW\)URP1RWR1R 1XPEHU RI VWUXFWXUHV -HUU\¶V 'UDZ ¿UH FRQ- /HYHO&DXVHRIWKH¿UHZDV WKUHDWHQHGGRZQIURP WDLQHGDWDFUHV XQGHULQYHVWLJDWLRQ WILDFIRE TERMINOLOGY What did they say? Blue Mountain Eagle We’re hearing an abundance RIZLOG¿UHWHUPVDQGWLWOHVODWH- ly associated with the Canyon &UHHN&RPSOH[¿UH +HUHDUHVRPHGH¿QLWLRQVIRU WKHPRUHFRPPRQO\XVHGWHUPV • Air tanker: A fixed-wing aircraft equipped to drop fire retardants or suppressants. • Backfire: A fire set along the inner edge of a fire line to burn the fuel in the path of a wildfire and/or change the direction. • Bambi bucket: A collapsible bucket slung below a helicopter, used to dip water from sources for fire suppression. • Complex: Two or more sepa- rate incidents in the same general area, assigned to a single incident commander or unified command. • Contained: A fuel break around the fire has been complet- ed. It might include natural barriers or manually created lines. • Controlled: The complete extinguishing of a fire, including spot fires. The fireline has been strengthened to keep flare-ups within the fire’s perimeter. • Hazard trees: Trees with struc- tural defects that might cause all or part of the tree to potentially strike a “target,” such as a vehicle, building or a place where people gather. • Incident Commander: The person responsible for the man- agement of all incident operations at the incident site. • Inversion: A layer of stable air where the temperature increases with increase in altitude. It acts as a cover and limits the amount of vertical motion in the atmosphere. • Level 1 evacuation: Be ready. There is an incident in the area, people there should be aware of potential evacuation. Monitor emergency services sources and local media for information. Vol- untarily relocate to a shelter or with family/friends outside of the affected area. If they choose to remain, they should be ready at a moment’s notice. • Level 2 evacuation: Get set. There is significant danger in the area, and residents should be ready to leave at a moment’s no- tice. People are encouraged to go to a shelter or with family/friends outside the area as soon as possi- ble. Those choosing to stay should be ready to leave immediately. Residents may have time to gather items, but doing so is at their own risk. This might be the only notice people receive. Emergency ser- vices can’t guarantee they will be able to notify residents if conditions rapidly deteriorate. • Level 3 evacuation: Go now! Danger to the area is current or imminent, and people should evacuate immediately, quickly and safely, without gathering belong- ings or attempting to protect their home. Follow any directions from emergency services personnel. Entry into evacuated areas will be denied until the hazard subsides. This will be the last notice given. • PIO: Public information officer. The main responsibility of a PIO is to provide information to the media and public as required by law and according to the standards of their profession. • Rappeller: A crew of specialist firefighters trained to access a fire area by sliding down ropes sus- pended from a hovering helicopter. • Red Flag Warning: Term used by fire weather forecasters to alert forecast users of an ongoing or im- minent critical fire weather pattern. • Spotter: The person responsi- ble for selecting drop targets and supervising the needs of dropping smokejumpers. • The Level 1 alert was lift- HGIRU6HQHFDDQGRWKHUVZHUH GHFUHDVHG 7KH /HYHO HYDFXDWLRQV LQYROYLQJWKH-HUU\¶V'UDZ¿UH UHPDLQHG LQ HIIHFW IRU 5LFFR 5DQFK 5RDG 6WDQGDUG &UHHN 'HDQ &UHHN 5RDG DQG 'L[LH &UHHN Saturday, Aug. 22 )RUHVW 6XSHUYLVRU 6WHYH %HYHUOLQ VDLG WKH FRPPXQLW\ KDGPDQ\TXHVWLRQVDERXWZKDW KDSSHQHGGXULQJWKRVH¿UVWVHY- HUDOGD\VDQGWKH)RUHVW6HUYLFH wanted to offer a factual se- TXHQFHRIWKHHYHQWVOHDGLQJXS WRZKHQWKH¿UHH[SORGHGRXWRI FRQWURO ³3HRSOH MXVW ZRQGHU KRZ GRHVLWJRIURPKHUHWRWKHUH´ %HYHUOLQ VDLG ³:H WKLQN LW¶V LPSRUWDQWIRUORFDOIRONVLQWKH FRPPXQLW\ WR XQGHUVWDQG WKH LQLWLDODWWDFNZHGLG´ 7KH&DQ\RQ&UHHN&RPSOH[ VWDUWHGDVWZRVPDOOHU¿UHVEXUQ- LQJLQGUDPDWLFDOO\GLIIHUHQWWHU- UDLQWKH0DVRQ6SULQJ¿UHHDVW RI +LJKZD\ LQ UHODWLYHO\ ÀDWJURXQGDQGWKH%HUU\&UHHN ¿UHLQDVWHHSURFN\SRUWLRQRI WKH 6WUDZEHUU\ 0RXQWDLQ :LO- GHUQHVV %RWK ¿UHV VWDUWHG $XJ following a three-day lightning VWRUPWKDWVZHSWRYHUPXFKRI (DVWHUQ 2UHJRQ $ WRWDO RI QHZ ¿UHV ZHUH VSRWWHG RQ WKH 0DOKHXU 1DWLRQDO )RUHVW IURP VRXWK RI 6HQHFD WR QRUWK DQG HDVWRIWKH,QGLDQ5RFNDUHD 7KH)RUHVW6HUYLFHGHSOR\HG one heavy air tanker, three sin- gle-engine air tankers, two he- OLFRSWHUV VPRNHMXPSHUV DQG UDSSHOOHUV WKUHH ¿UH HQJLQHV D SHUVRQKDQGFUHZRQHEXOO- GR]HU DQG WZR ZDWHU WHQGHUV WR ¿JKW WKH %HUU\ &UHHN DQG 0DVRQ 6SULQJ ¿UHV %HYHUOLQ signed off on an order granting VSHFLDOSHUPLVVLRQWRXVHFKDLQ- VDZVIRU¿UHVXSSUHVVLRQLQWKH ZLOGHUQHVVDUHD By Wednesday afternoon, crews had surrounded the Ma- VRQ 6SULQJ ¿UH ZLWK GR]HU DQG UHWDUGDQW OLQHV DQG IHOW FRQ¿- dent enough to reassign one of WKHLUKHOLFRSWHUVWR%HUU\&UHHN ZKHUH¿UHDFWLYLW\ZDVEHFRP- LQJ LQFUHDVLQJO\ DJJUHVVLYH 2QH¿UH¿JKWHUKDGWREHWDNHQ WRWKHKRVSLWDOZLWKKHDWH[KDXV- tion, but has since recovered and UHMRLQHGWKHOLQH%HYHUOLQVDLG 7KH %HUU\ &UHHN ¿UH JUHZ WR DFUHV E\ 7KXUVGD\$XJ DQGEXUQLQJDFWLYHO\WRWKH ZHVW 7ZR PRUH VWUXFWXUH SUR- WHFWLRQ HQJLQHV RQH GR]HU DQG D¿YHSHUVRQKDQGFUHZDUULYHG IURPWKH2UHJRQ'HSDUWPHQWRI Forestry to get a better handle RQWKHEOD]H Meanwhile, the 10-acre Ma- VRQ6SULQJ¿UHDOVRMXPSHGLWV FRQWDLQPHQWOLQH7KXUVGD\DIWHU KLJK ZLQGV LJQLWHG D VSRW ¿UH DERXW IHHW DZD\ ,W ZDV DW WKDW WLPH ZKHQ D7\SH PDQ- DJHPHQWWHDPDVVXPHGFRQWURO RIERWK¿UHVZLWKWKHPRVWGLI¿- A7 FXOWFRQGLWLRQV\HWWRFRPH “I believe we did everything we could with the resources ZH KDG DYDLODEOH WR SXW WKRVH WZR ¿UHV RXW´ %HYHUOLQ VDLG ³6RPHWLPHV0RWKHU1DWXUHKDV RWKHUSODQVDQGWKDW¶VZKDWKDS- SHQHG´ %\)ULGD\$XJWKH0D- VRQ 6SULQJ KDG JURZQ GUDPDW- ically to 500 acres and crossed the highway toward Canyon &UHHN :LQG JXVWV SLFNHG XS WR PSK VSUHDGLQJ ÀDPHV DVTXLFNO\DVVKHULII¶VGHSXWLHV FRXOGVFUDPEOHWRLVVXHHYDFXD- WLRQQRWLFHV :LWK ERWK ¿UHV EXUQLQJ DF- WLYHO\ WKH PDLQ IRFXV EHFDPH SURWHFWLQJ KRPHV )LUH GHSDUW- PHQWVIURP&DQ\RQ&LW\-RKQ 'D\ 'D\YLOOH 0RXQW 9HUQRQ 3UDLULH &LW\ 0RQXPHQW DQG /RQJ &UHHN DOO UHVSRQGHG ZKLOH WKH LQFLGHQW FRPPDQG- HU RQ WKH 0DVRQ 6SULQJ ¿UH ZRUNHG WR GHWHUPLQH ZKLFK VWUXFWXUHV QHHGHG LPPHGLDWH SURWHFWLRQ 0RXQW 9HUQRQ ¿UH¿JKWHUV ZHUH DVVLJQHG WR JXDUG KRPHV XS&RUUDO*XOFKDQGWKH-%DU/ 5DQFK$QRWKHUVSRW¿UHHUXSW- ed at Eagle Peak, further adding to the juggling act of assigning UHVRXUFHV %HWZHHQ QRRQ DQG SP WKH¿UHVKDGEHFRPHWRRPXFK DQG KRPHV EXUQHG WR WKH JURXQG ³,W¶VGLI¿FXOW´%HYHUOLQVDLG ³:HOLYHKHUHWRR:KHQWKLQJV OLNH WKDW KDSSHQ WR RXU QHLJK- ERUVDQGRXUFRPPXQLW\LW¶VD ORVVWKDWHYHU\ERG\IHHOV´ Later that evening, local UHVRXUFHV ZHUH VHQW KRPH DQG D7\SHPDQDJHPHQWWHDP² WKH PRVW WUDLQHG DQG KLJKHVW VWDIIHG WHDP DYDLODEOH ² ZDV DVVLJQHG WR &DQ\RQ &UHHN )LUH¿JKWLQJ UHVRXUFHV UHPDLQ stretched thin across the North- ZHVWDVDQXPEHURIODUJHEOD]HV continue to burn in Oregon and :DVKLQJWRQ 'DYH +DQQLEDO -RKQ 'D\ EDVH PDQDJHU IRU *UD\EDFN )RUHVWU\ D ZLOG¿UH DQG HPHU- gency services contractor, said LWZRXOGQ¶WKDYHPDWWHUHGKRZ PDQ\¿UH¿JKWHUVWKH\KDGDYDLO- DEOH JLYHQ WKH H[WUHPHO\ GLI¿- FXOWFRQGLWLRQV ³,I ZH¶G KDG H[WUD ¿UH¿JKWHUV ZH¶G KDYH RQO\ EHHQPRUHOLNHO\WRKDYHVRPH VHULRXVLQMXULHVRUZRUVH´+DQ- QLEDOVDLG³7KH¿UHVWLOOZRXOG KDYH FODLPHG ZKDW LW GLG 2XU hearts go out to all who lost their KRPHVLQWKLV¿UH´ %HYHUOLQVDLGWKH)RUHVW6HU- YLFHZLOOZRUNRQDSODQWRUH- KDELOLWDWHWKHODQGVFDSHEXUQHG E\WKH&DQ\RQ&UHHN&RPSOH[ and he is thankful for all the VXSSRUWIURPYROXQWHHUVDQGWKH 5HG&URVV
