Larch Creek Fire crosses highway, heading east

New evacuation areas:

Level 3 GO NOW: evacuation for Wamic & Pine Hollow. Wy'East Middle School (3000 Wy'East Rd) in Hood River is the designated shelter for people. The Hood River Fairgrounds (3020 Wy'East Rd) is still a shelter for livestock.

Update, July 11, 4:14 p.m.

Level 3 (Go Now) evacuation for Wamic and Pine Hollow. Wy'East Middle School (3000 Wy'East Road) in Hood River is the designated shelter for people. The Hood River Fairgrounds (3020 Wy'East Road) is still a shelter for livestock.

Update — The Larch Creek Fire has now reached 10,686 acres and is still zero percent contained, according to information from Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) and Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM).

Many evacuation levels remain in place. Two near areas have been added to Level 1 (Be Ready). Highway 197 is back open, in both directions.

Pine Hollow and Wamic remain under a Level 2 (Be Set) order, meaning there is significant fire danger and residents should be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice. Those who need extra time to leave — people with children or elders, medical conditions, disabilities, animals to corral, etc. — should being evacuating, according to a Wasco County press release.

Hood River Fairgrounds, locationed at 3020 Wyeast Road in Hood River, is the evacuation site for people leaving the Wamic and Pine Hollow area. Take Forest Road 48 west to Highway 35, and into Hood River. Livestock and pets are welcome here.

Sherman County Fairgrounds is open for evacuation of livestock and pets.

Current evacuation levels:

Level 3 (Go Now): From Friend Road east to Elliott Road and Highway 197, south to Badger Creek Road and Fairgrounds Road, west to McCorkle Grade Road, city of Tygh Valley. Highway 197, east to the Deschutes River, north to Hulse Road and south to Fred Ashley Road.

Level 2 (Get Set): White River east to the Deschutes River, south to Oak Springs Road/Juniper Flat Road. In Pine Hollow and Wamic from Badger Creek Road/Fairgrounds Road, south to Rock Creek Dam Rd/Wamic Market Road, west to Threemile Road, east to Highway 197.

New Level 2 (Get Ready): From the west border of Van Miller Road and north border to the White River. South border of Old Wapinitia Road, and from intersection of Old Wapinitia Road to the Deschutes River in a northeast direction. North border is Oak Spring Road on the east side of Highway 197. From intersection of Kingsley Road and Hix Road due east to intersection of Tygh Ridge Road and Highway 197, southeast to where Tygh Ridge Road turns north, and Tygh Ridge Road to the south. Wamic Market Road/Rock Creek Dam Road, south to the White River, West to Campbell Lane. From Highway 197, east to the Deschutes River, south to Hulse Road. From Elliott Road, east to Kinglsey Road/Dufur Gap Road, north to Friend Road and south to the Level 3 border.

The fire was caused by human activity. At this time, 144 overhead (unified command personnel and general staff), 23 fire engines, nine handcrews, four water tenders and five bulldozers are fighting the fire. One firefighter was transported to a hospital for heat-related injuries yesterday.

Yesterday evening, July 10, the winds subsided and the fire’s growth slowed. Bulldozers working through the night made good progress creating control lines and engines patrolled near homes in the fire area, according to a press release.

Today, structural task forces will keep mopping up and securing area homes.

Firefighters will put in hose lays, and work with engines and water tenders to strengthen control lines. This often means clearing a fireline with a dozer, then “plumbing” it with a hose so that water can be piped in to protect the structure, said Andy Dwyer, ODF PIO trainee.

Dozers and crews will work on establishing a line around the fire on the east side of Highway 197. Air resources will keep working through the day.

ODF’s Team 2 is shadowing the Central Oregon Interagency Management Task Force today, before joining a unified command with The OSFM Green Team at 6 p.m. today.

The next few days, temperatures are expected to fall and winds to decrease, “a very welcome forecast for our firefighters,” read the press release.

DUFUR — Human activity started the Larch Creek Fire, which has crossed Highway 197 and is still burning rapidly to the east. New “Get Set” and “Get Ready” evacuation levels are in place.

The fire crossed Highway 197 and continued its fast-moving growth to the east on Wednesday evening, July 10, burning mostly open grass. At last report, it covered 7,100 acres.

Some spot fires had appeared in the Oak Creek area on July 10. Spot fires happen when embers rise from the main fire, going up with the smoke, then fall onto another area, starting small solitary blazes. Firefighters try to hunt down and control any spot fires they can find.

Initial attack crews worked through the night, putting bulldozer lines and burnouts along the fire’s east and west borders, from the north down to the unsecured south.

As of yesterday, agencies fighting the fire are under the unified command of Cason Cain and Lance Lighty, Central Oregon Type 3 Interagency Fire Management Team. They and the OSFM Green Incident team were in place at Dufur High School. State, local and federal resources were working to slow progression towards Highway 197 and the Shadybrook community south of the fire.

A red-flag warning for high winds, high temperature and low relative humidity covered the fire area yesterday, according to an Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) press release. Local fire danger is “extreme” due to high wind.

The fire’s cause was human activity, and is still under investigation, according to an OSFM and ODF press release.

The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) and the Incident Commanders of the Unified Command, Central Oregon Type 3 Interagency Incident Management Team and the Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM) Green Team, working together, elevated evacuation levels.

ODF’s Team 2 will arrive this morning, July 11. They will be in unified command with OSFM Green Team starting tomorrow evening, July 12. Three task forces from Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties arrived the morning of July 10, with three more scheduled to arrive that afternoon.

“Air resources, structure task forces, dozers, engines and handcrews worked tirelessly throughout the day. Resources will remain engaged throughout the night, protecting structures and building fireline,” read the ODF press release.

Local landowners fought the early stages of the fire with their own resources, “really stepping up” to put out spot fires and help fight the blaze, Dwyer said. In the early stages of the fire, they saw many locals “fighting fire right alongside the agency people.”

A Red Cross shelter is open at Maupin High School, for all evacuated community members. Sherman County Fairgrounds is open for evacuation of livestock and pets, and Hood River Fairgrounds is also open for displaced animals.

Highway 197 is closed in both directions from milepost 33 to milepost 36. Monitor Trip Check for updates at www.tripcheck.com.

“Local fire danger levels are ‘extreme,’ everyone is strongly encouraged to realize the current danger of how quickly a fire can start; it only takes one spark. Please do your part, do not park or drive on dry grass, know the current fire restrictions and prepare yourself with a shovel, water and fire extinguisher when outdoors,” read the OSFM press release.

The Larch Creek Fire started around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, July 9.