Wildfire season is here according to the BLM

By Mindy Gould on Tuesday, June 11th, 2024 in Eastern/Southeast Oregon News More Top Stories

HARNEY COUNTY (Released from the BLM Oregon & Washington)-The weather is changing, and wildfire season is here! Last weekend, we had one of our first fires of the season: the human-caused Sage Fire in eastern Oregon.

A warm windy day in eastern Oregon and Washington can quickly dry fine fuels to the point that just a spark will ignite them.

Investigators are still working to establish the exact cause of the Sage Fire, which was reported midafternoon Saturday along the southern border between Oregon and Idaho, but we know it was human-caused.

How do we know? There was no lightning in the area where the fire started. Human causes can be deliberate, like an arsonist, or accidental, like an escaped campfire or a chain dragging across rocks and causing sparks.

Learn about our fire restrictions: http://ow.ly/Ptzr50OuZ3H

For more fire info, follow Bureau of Land Management Fire

Photo: A Large Air Tanker drops a load of retardant on the Sage Fire. Ground resources contained the fire later that evening. Photo by Ian Morcom, BLM.