Crews reinforce lines on regional wildfires as Paradise Fire Prompts Evacuation Notice
By Dan Thesman on Wednesday, August 5th, 2026 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
UMATILLA COUNTY — Firefighters facing warming, drying, and increasingly unstable weather are reinforcing protection lines across three regional wildfires, as authorities urge residents southeast of Walla Walla to prepare for potential evacuations related to the Paradise Fire in the Mill Creek Watershed.
The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office issued a Level 1 “Get Ready” evacuation notice for areas east of Tiger Creek Road/NF65, south of the Oregon-Washington state line — including the Mill Creek Watershed Intake Trail—north of the Mill Creek River Corridor, and west of the fire perimeter. The precautionary advisory alerts residents to active flames and emergency crews operating nearby.
Map provided by Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office
The uncontained Paradise Fire has burned 1,664 acres about 10 miles southeast of Walla Walla within the city’s municipal watershed, growing 159 acres Tuesday as burning debris rolled down steep terrain along Paradise Ridge. Crews are carefully conducting suppression work to protect the watershed while reinforcing indirect lines along Forest Service Roads 64 and 65.
Four miles southwest of Tollgate and 12 miles northwest of Elgin, the Hagen Fire expanded by 412 acres to 40,803 acres and remains 11 percent contained. Helicopters dropped 100,000 gallons of water to aid ground crews securing the south, southeast, and eastern flanks. Firefighters are improving road prep on Forest Service Road 3128 while keeping northern and western lines secure.
Meanwhile, crews have achieved 98% containment on the 860-acre Horse Ridge Fire, located five miles northeast of Meacham, which held within established perimeters and remains in patrol status.
A total of 1,075 personnel are assigned across all three incidents.
