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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 2, 2015)
Wildfires Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, September 2, 2015 A5 FEMA provides funds to fight wildfire Funds won’t go to individuals or homeowners SEATTLE — The Federal Emer- gency Management Agency has au- thorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Canyon Creek Complex Fire. FEMA Region X Regional Ad- ministrator Kenneth D. Murphy de- termined that the fire constituted a major disaster. Murphy approved Or- egon’s request for a federal Fire Man- agement Assistance Grant Aug. 14. At the time, the fire was threat- ening 300 homes around John Day and Canyon City. Approximately 95 percent of the threatened homes are primary residences. The fire also threatened historic buildings, City Hall, the courthouse, post office, li- brary and other facilities. Mandato- ry and voluntary evacuations orders were issued for over 200 people. The fire was 0 percent contained. The authorization makes FEMA funding available to pay 75 percent of Oregon’s eligible firefighting costs for managing, mitigating and controlling designated fires. It does not provide assistance to individuals, homeowners or business owners and doesn’t cover other infrastructure damage caused by the fire. The grant is provided through the President’s Disaster Relief Fund and made available by FEMA to assist in fighting fires that threaten to cause a major disaster. Eligible items can include expenses for field camps; equipment use, repair and replace- ment; mobilization and demobiliza- tion activities; and tools, materials and supplies. SHIFT Power lines are safe for now and those heading back out. “When you’re heading back out on a fire, you’re obviously fresher; you got some sleep, you got some good food in your belly and you got some coffee in your system, so you’re a little more revived,” said Jesse Kiene, a Bureau of Land Management firefighter from Medford. During your shift, “You’re ramped because that shift requires your energy,” he added. “But once you drive off and you’re heading back into camp, that’s when the exhaustion sets in.” By the time you get back to base camp, “All you want to do is eat and go to bed,” Kiene said. “Those are your two priorities.” After eating and putting down some coffee, “You’re generally pretty excited to go out there; every day’s something new, and you’re kind of excited to see what might be going on,” said BLM-Medford firefighter David Way. But when you’re coming off a shift, he added, “You’re pretty tired and general- ly sore and just want to eat as fast as you can and bed down and get as much sleep as possible, which some- times means no shower even if they’re available.” While firefighters getting off shift will generally filter in to base camp at the Grant County Fairgrounds in John Day over a few hours, de- pending on which area of the fire they’ve been stationed at, supervisors attend an in- depth shift change briefing at base camp. After the meeting, super- visors will share specific de- tails with their crews about what they will be doing and where they will be working. “The actual time of the information transfer might only be 15 minutes, but the whole change from the time people leave here and get in place and the time the night shift leaves and gets back here probably is (about) one to two hours,” said Canyon Creek Complex fire opera- tions section chief Jeff Surb- er. The shift change brief- ings at base camp are also a pep talk, safety exhortation and weather forecast. During the night shift briefing that took place Fri- day, about nine hours before high winds caused the Can- yon Creek Complex fire to roar out of the woods and JOHN DAY – Although the Canyon Creek wildfire ad- vanced and narrowly missed Prairie City Saturday, Oregon Trail Electric Co-op pow- er lines are, for now, out of harm’s way, according to co- op officials. “If the wildfire goes the way that it looks like it is go- ing to go, we dodged a huge bullet,” said Ned Ratterman, OTEC’s director of engineer- ing and operations. Two OTEC linemen were among those ordered to evac- uate their Prairie City homes. OTEC crews closely mon- itored the wildfire as it moved away from power line areas. There are no expectations that it will affect power poles. “There are no major con- cerns on our part as of right now,” Ratterman said. “But, of course, all of that can change in a heartbeat. We are in a ‘wait-and-see’ game, again. But, we are definitely feeling a lot better about the situation from a power utility standpoint than we were Saturday.” Electrical power was ful- ly restored along the Canyon Creek Complex wildfire path last Thursday. “You could hear people hooting and hollering in the hills,” Ratterman said. “People were shouting ‘thank you’ up into the night.” The lights came back on Blue Mountain Eagle Continued from Page A1 The Eagle/Sean Ellis Before they begin a shift and after they finish a shift, firefighters attend a briefing. The information ranges from a status report on the fire to a pep talk and caution to be safe. threaten Prairie City, inci- dent meteorologist Terry Lebo warned supervisors that strong winds early Sat- urday morning could change fire behavior dramatically. Fire safety officer Paul Gauchay encouraged them to be safe. On one hand, he remind- ed firefighters that they are “providing comfort to a lot of families out there that might need that assurance right now.” But he also added, “Keep it in perspective. If it gets hot in there, know when to back out. Nothing’s more import- ant than your life. Know where those safety zones and escape routes are.” Neil Miler, who is in charge of night operations, reminded those at the brief- ing that protecting lives, in- cluding their own, is the No. 1 priority. Firefighters are here to stop the fire and protect prop- erty, “but we’re also here to come home every shift and get back to our families,” he said. “Make sure you have an escape plan.” A lot of the people com- bating the Canyon Creek fire have been fighting fires for 75 to 90 days now, and mak- ing sure they get the proper rest between shifts is a prior- ity, said public information officer Traci Weaver. “If they’re not getting that appropriate rest, that’s when accidents happen, that’s when poor decisions are made,” she said. Firefighters operate un- der a two-to-one rest ratio, meaning if they work for 16 hours, then they are required to get eight hours of rest. If a shift is extended because of fire behavior, then those rest 2830 10th St., Baker City, OR 541-524-0122 EVERY OTHER TUESDAY hours are also extended to meet the guidelines. “We try to get these peo- ple rested so when they go back out, their minds are clear and their bodies are ready to go,” Kennedy said. “Firefighting is unique be- cause you can’t make mis- takes out there. “The end state of a bad decision could be a life-threatening issue,” he added. “The tempo is very high out there, and they have to have that clarity in their minds on what the mission focus is.” “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” - Helen Keller There are endless benefits to becoming a volunteer. Whether you can donate hours or minutes, you are valued. Join us on September 3rd at 5:30 pm at The Outpost in John Day to learn how your special skills can help Grant- Harney County CASA. Contributed photo Crews from Oregon Trail Electric Co-op repair a power line in the Canyon Creek Complex fire path. through the efforts of dedicat- ed journeymen working non- stop, 18-hour shifts and in full attack mode, Ratterman said. “Journeymen are hard- wired to go in and do what it takes to bring the power back up,” he added. “This is their community, too.” OTEC crews are closely monitoring the proximity of the fire to power lines in the evacuated areas as a precau- tion. Additional de-energiza- tions may be required as the winds shift. A TTENTION G RANT C OUNTY V ETERANS : Did you know a service-connected disabled veteran is entitled to FREE use of Oregon State Parks? See your Grant County Veteran Services Officer today for more information, located at Grant County Courthouse. Open Mon, Wed, & Fri, 10 am - 4 pm, by appointment. Call 541-575-1631 02610 - BME Kruse - Page 1 - Composite I am not sure where to begin - I am one of very few who still has a home up Canyon Creek. Why mine is not gone, only God knows. I am so sad for all my neighbors and friends, and pray daily for strength for them. I want to thank all the firefighters. The OTEC crews that are working 15 hour days to get our power back on. The highway department that’s cleaning up the roads and dangerous trees. Larry & Jan Pierce for opening their home & motor home to us and our animals, and to Grant County for opening their arms and wrapping them around all of us affected by the fire up Canyon Creek. God bless each of you. GRANT-HARNEY COUNTY CASA Bert Kruse 02632 - GC Chamber - Page 1 - Composite 02610
