Firefighters focus on suppressing new growth on Battle Mountain Complex
By Dan Thesman on Wednesday, July 24th, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
UKIAH – [News release from Oregon Department of Forestry] Overnight, firefighters faced heightened fire activity as they chased and fought areas of the fire that crossed the line on the southeast corner and southern head of the fire. Crews shifted resources to focus efforts to minimize spread.
“Even though it’s cooler at night, thermal layers of air above and within the canyons can trap heat and create localized flare ups. It can be counterintuitive to the public,” said Operations Section Chief Aaron Whiteley. “From day one on the fire, the topography and weather has thrown everything it can at us. That’s the same story for a lot of the current fires in this region. Our firefighters are doing an amazing job.”
Elsewhere on the fire, night shift crews patrolled the fire, prepped firing operations and tied in dozer and hand line. Today, firefighters will focus on the southern head of the fire near 6 Mile Creek and southeast corner of the fire.
The Monkey Creek and Boneyard fires are nearly merged and continue to grow towards each other. ODF’s Team 1 and Team 3 have been coordinating with each other to align objectives to manage the fire together.
Crews will continue mop-up operations and patrolling on the 4,485-acre North Fork Owens Fire, which stands at 40% containment (the complex stands at 5% containment). Division resources will patrol the perimeter overnight and support local initial attack for any new starts.
The Battle Mountain Complex consists of the North Fork Owens and Monkey Creek Fires – two of 17 fires in northeast Oregon that started in the late afternoon and evening of July 17, 2024. The Snake Fire merged with the Monkey Creek Fire on July 22, 2024. Officials will designate a fire complex to manage them under a single organization to improve efficiency and simplify incident management processes.
Evacuations: Level 1 (Be Ready), Level 2 (Be Set) and Level 3 (Go Now) evacuations are in effect. For updated information, visit:
· For Umatilla County, follow facebook.com/UmatillaCountySheriff or sign up for Umatilla County Emergency Alert System at https://member.everbridge.net/index/2590041373147145.
· For Grant County, visit the RAPTOR arcgis site or sign up for alerts at: https://member.everbridge.net/index/825462649520134.
FIRE AT A GLANCE
Total Estimated Size: 60,623 acres
Monkey Creek: 56,139
North Fork Owens: 4,485 acres
Containment: 5%
Cause: Under Investigation
Estimated Cost: $3,500,000
All Resources
Hand Crews: 18
Engines: 34
Water Tenders: 16
Dozers: 10
Helicopters: 6
Total Personnel: 678
