Falls and Telephone Fires see increased containment

By Logan Bagett on Wednesday, August 7th, 2024 in Eastern/Southeast Oregon News More Top Stories

HARNEY/GRANT COUNTY- (UPDATE – 8/7) – From Alaska Incident Management Team:

Falls and Telephone Fires Update for Aug. 7, 2024

Telephone Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 53,388 Start Date: July 22, 2024 Location: 12 miles NE of Burns, OR Containment: 40% Total Personnel: 484 personnel Cause: Lightning/Natural Resources Assigned: 14 hand crews, 4 engines, 2 bulldozers, 2 skidders

Falls Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 147,320 Start Date: July 10, 2024 Location: 13 Miles NW of Burns, OR Containment: 75% Total Personnel: 554 Cause: Human-caused, under investigation Structures Triaged: Residences: 386 / Commercial: 119 / Outbuildings: 760

Resources Assigned: 23 hand crews, 40 engines, 17 bulldozers, 24 water tenders, 6 masticators, 8 skidders

Sand Mountain Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 7,465 Start Date: July 25, 2024 Location: 17 miles SW of Seneca, OR Containment: 0% Total Personnel: Staffed by Falls Fire Cause: Lightning/Natural

Other Fires Quick Facts:

Whiskey Mountain: 4,345 acres / Cow Creek: 86 acres / Parasol: 485 acres / Poison: 1,059 acres / Ritter: 461 Total Personnel: Staffed by Falls Fire

Aerial resources assigned: Two Type 1 helicopters / One Type 1 Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS) assigned and available to all fires in the area

Priorities for Wednesday, August 7:

1) Initial Attack (IA): The potential for new fire starts remains significant; firefighters are ready to respond to any new threats and remain vigilant and focused on IA.

2) West side of the Telephone Fire/King Mountain area

3) Northeast side of the Falls/Sand Fire along the 31 road

4) Northeast side of the Telephone Fire

Fire Summaries: Low relative humidity, surface winds, and unstable air continue to drive the potential for moderate fire activity. These conditions are challenging firefighters working to contain spot fires in some areas and increasing work on hand and dozer lines.

Telephone Fire: Winds lessened and relative humidities increased slightly Tuesday, but the Telephone Fire remained moderately active and firefighters, including 3 hotshot crews (Navajo, Wyoming, and Grand Hotshots), worked with dozers to build containment line south of King Mountain back to Trout Creek and 2820 Road. Initial attack was the highest priority to limit new fire activity and keep the fire west of the 28 Road. Today, two divisions on the eastern side of the fire will merge and resources will be adjusted to allow for increased personnel in the west near 600 Road where spotting activity continues. As our crews work along the 28 road, they are working in close partnership with the Burns Paiute Tribe to reduce the impact to values that are culturally important to the Tribe, including using specialized equipment with a lighter footprint as crews prepare shaded fuel breaks. A shaded fuel break is when a majority of, but not all, trees are removed, with 75-foot separation between trees, and surface fuels are removed to

the extent possible. These breaks are still aesthetically pleasing but have enough separation to potentially limit extreme fire behavior.

Falls/Sand Mountain Fires: The northern portion of the Falls Fire saw the most fire activity yesterday. On the northwest and west flanks of the Sand Mountain Fire, firefighters strengthened and improved fireline using crews and heavy equipment to remove fuels. Efforts focused on keeping the fire from moving north toward Izee and protecting private property, range resources and livestock. Crews working on the northeast focused on installing hose lays in and around spot fires along the 31 Road and completing indirect fireline on the 488 and 31 Roads. Indirect line is line placed away from the fire edge that takes advantage of natural and man-made barriers and allows for burn out operations, which could take place today if needed. Crews working along the southern and southwestern portions of the Falls Fire will continue monitoring and patrolling but will be assigned to initial attack if needed and will be available to move to other areas or the Telephone fire.

Weather: Today, slightly cooler temperatures will prevail, but conditions remain dry with terrain driven winds in the morning. This afternoon, gusts of 25mph are possible along with moderate air instability. Looking ahead, conditions are expected to remain seasonably hot and dry with slightly weaker afternoon winds and a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the region.

Evacuations: For the most accurate evacuation information, please visit the Harney County Sheriff’s evacuation map here: https://bit.ly/FallsFireEvac, or the Grant County Emergency Management Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100068819321423.

Closures: A closure is in effect for portions of the Malheur National Forest west of 395B, north of Mt. Vernon and south of Long Creek, in the Fox Valley area, including all roads, trails, and camping locations within the fire closure area. Due to control and containment measures portions of the Malheur National Forest previously under the South Area Closure are now reduced. Areas remain closed to protect public health and safety while fire activity and fire suppression operations continue. This closure will be effective August 6, 2024, through December 31, 2024, unless rescinded sooner. This Forest Order rescinds and replaces the previous southern area closure (06-04-00-24-17). A detailed map of the closure is included and available on the Malheur National Forest website (https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/malheur/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD1198892) and in U.S. Forest Service offices.

Investigation: U.S. Forest Service fire investigators are seeking the public’s assistance with any tips or information pertinent to the start of the Falls Fire on the Malheur National Forest. Please submit any information that could assist fire investigation efforts to SM.FS.R6TipHotLine@usda.gov.

Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR): TFRs in the area have been changing; pilots should check the latest information on the Federal Aviation Administration TFR website prior to flying: https://tfr.faa.gov/tfr_map_ims/html/index.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Falls-Fire-2024-61562126623985/

Falls Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/ormaf-falls-fire

Telephone Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/ormaf-telephone-fire Fire Information Line: 541-208-4370, staffed 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Email: 2024.Falls@firenet.gov

Harney County Non-emergency Evacuation Questions: 541-589-5579

Air Quality Questions: 541-573-2271. Air quality information, searchable by zip code: https://fire.airnow.gov/ Smoke Outlooks: https://outlooks.airfire.org/outlook

*****

(UPDATE – 8/6)

Telephone Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 53,110 Start Date: July 22, 2024 Location: 12 miles NE of Burns, OR Containment: 31%. Total Personnel: 484 personnel Cause: Lightning/Natural Resources Assigned: 16 hand crews, 10 engines, 6 bulldozers, 8 water tenders, 5 skidders.

Falls Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 147,161 Start Date: July 10, 2024 Location: 13 Miles NW of Burns, OR Containment: 75% Total Personnel: 554 Cause: Human-caused, under investigation Structures Triaged: Residences: 386; Commercial: 119 Outbuildings: 760 Resources Assigned: 27 hand crews, 46 engines, 16 bulldozers, 21 water tenders, 6 masticators, 8 skidders.

Sand Mountain Fire Quick Facts:

Size: 5,958 Start Date: July 25, 2024 Location: 17 miles SW of Seneca, OR Containment: 0% Total Personnel: Staffed by Falls Fire personnel Cause: Lightning/Natural.

Other Fires Quick Facts:

Whiskey Mountain: 4,345 acres; Cow Creek: 86 acres; Parasol: 485 acres; Poison: 1,059 acres; Ritter: 461 Total Personnel: Staffed by Falls Fire personnel.

Aerial resources assigned: 2 Type 1 helicopters and One Type 1 Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS) assigned and available to all fires in the area.

Community Meetings Scheduled:

Tuesday, August 6 at 7 pm, at the Harney County Chamber of Commerce, 484 N. Broadway, in Burns Leaders of the Alaska Incident Management Team will be in Burns for a community meeting to provide an update on the Telephone Fire, Falls Fire, and several other fires we are working to suppress in the area. The meeting will also be shared on the Malheur National Forest Facebook page, as well as the Falls and Telephone Fires Facebook page.

Priorities for Monday, August 5:

1) Initial Attack (IA): The potential for new fire starts in the area remains significant, and firefighters remain vigilant and focused on IA, ready to respond to any new threats

2) Southwest side of the Telephone Fire

3) Northeast side of the Falls/Sand Fire

4) East side of the Telephone Fire

Fire Summaries:

Conditions are prime for high fire activity today, and the fires continue to test our crews’ fortitude and resilience, but lines are holding. As of now, we have 300,000 acres of fire in our fire area, and 200,000 acres of line.

Telephone Fire:

The Telephone Fire was active Monday and will likely be active today as well. Lots of resources worked around the recent King Mountain slopover, including 3 hotshot crews (the Navajo, Wyoming, and Grand Hotshots) and aerial resources dropping retardant. Crews are working to find opportunities along the road system to wrap fire back into the 2820 road. Work will continue on this area today, including filling in small gaps in existing handline, and

increasing dozer line. The Rattlesnake area is looking good; crews will continue working on improving the anchor to it, and patrolling. Monday, crews gained depth mopping up into containment line along the east side of the Telephone Fire, and improved dozer line. In the southeast portion of the Telephone Fire, there is a pocket of unburned fuel around East Cow Creek with some fire moving around inside it, but this has not caused any issues to containment in the area. Crews will work today towards finalizing an arm on the northeast side of Poujade Field, progressing deeper into the containment line, and Oregon National Guard crews continue increasing depth of containment on the southeast side.

Falls/Sand Fires:

The Falls Fire also had lots of activity yesterday. In the Myrtle Creek area, crews had success conducting small-scale ignition operations along the 3150 road out to the 31 road, addressing some difficult areas with dead trees from bug kill. In this area, two fingers of fire pushed towards the road, and there were lots of spots across line, but all were caught. Crews will continue working hard in this area today. As fire weather potentially intensifies today, crews who have been working along the southern and southwestern portions of the Falls Fire will be assigned to Initial Attack if needed; they will otherwise continue to hold and secure line and increase mop up depth to the south and southwest sides, and extend mop up depth inside containment lines in the Whiskey Mountain area. In the Gilbert Ridge area, and also northwest of the Sand fire, crews will continue to hold and reinforce line, and mop up further into containment lines. The east/northeast side continues to look good; yesterday crews removed 9.5 miles of 1.5-inch diameter hose and related equipment there yesterday.

Poison Fire: An interior island of vegetation on Poison Creek filled in with fire, adding acres but no exterior growth. Crews are continuing to clean up pockets of fuel to more deeply secure the control line.

Weather: Terrain driven winds in the morning will give way to west southwest winds in the afternoon, turning west/northwesterly later in the day, with occasional gusts to 30 mph possible at exposed locations. Relative humidity will be in the low teens. Near Critical Fire Weather conditions are expected today.

Evacuations: For the most accurate evacuation information, please visit the Harney County Sheriff’s evacuation map here: https://bit.ly/FallsFireEvac, or the Grant County Emergency Management Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100068819321423.

Closures: A closure is in effect for the two portions of the Malheur National Forest that run west of 395B, north of Mt. Vernon and south of Long Creek, in the Fox Valley area, including all roads, trails, and camping locations within the fire closure area. A detailed map of the closure if included and available on the Malheur National Forest website (https://www.fs.usda.gov/malheur/) and offices.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Falls-Fire-2024-61562126623985/

Falls Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/ormaf-falls-fire

Telephone Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/ormaf-telephone-fire Fire Information Line: 541-208-4370, staffed 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Email: 2024.Falls@firenet.gov

Harney County non-emergency evacuation questions: 541-589-5579

Air quality questions: 541-573-2271. Air quality information, searchable by zip code: https://fire.airnow.gov/ Smoke Outlooks: https://outlooks.airfire.org/outlook