The White River Fire grew rapidly at the end of the week, forcing additional evacuations and threatening several communities in south Wasco County.
As of Tuesday morning, the fire had consumed 15,411 acres and was 10 percent contained, according to incident command.
Due to the worsening weather conditions on Friday, Wasco County Defense Board Chief in consensus with Oregon State Fire Marshal requested Mutual Aid, which brought three additional task Forces to fight the fire and protect residences. These three Task Forces consisted of Hood River, Skamania, Klickitat and Wasco County fire departments. Wasco County agencies include Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue, Dufur Fire and Mosier Fire. With these additional resources Fire Teams prevented the fire from overtaking the structures and residences in Pine Grove. No structures were lost at the White River Fire.
The fire is burning in private, state, and federal land. Three-hundred homes in and around the communities of Pine Grove, Sportsman’s Paradise, and Maupin were at risk, as well as Bonneville Power Administration power lines, Wasco Electric high transmission lines, Pine Grove water supply, and a high cultural resource area, according to a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) press release. A Level 3 evacuation notice has been issued for approximately 550 people in the affected communities.
Tygh Valley, 11 miles from the fire, was put on Level 1 evacuation notice Saturday evening. Notices and updates are posted on the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
The incident is currently being managed under Unified Command of Noel Livingston (Pacific Northwest Team 3) and Ian Yocum (Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal Red Team).
The east side of the fire saw significant fire activity both on the north and south corners, beginning early in the morning and continuing throughout the day, fire managers reported.
The fire followed the White River Canyon, burning actively and making runs up and out of the canyon and spotting on the south side of the river.
As the fire transitioned into the fine grasses, it moved rapidly towards Juniper Flat, where crews and engines worked to provide structure protection.
Both fixed wing aircraft and helicopters were able to work the north and south sides of the fire, supporting crews on the ground with water and retardant.
On the west side of the fire, crews continued to patrol and hold the containment lines on both the north and south edges. Overnight, firefighters remained focused on structure protection and monitoring the progress of the fire in White River Canyon.
On Monday at press time, firefighters were reported continuing to provide structure protection on both the south and east portions of the fire while also assessing any threats to the values at risk, including residences.
On the west side of the fire, crews were set to continue line construction, holding and improving containment around the perimeter. Fire managers will be evaluating options for controlling the fire on the south side of the White River corridor, while also continuing to support structure protection along side the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s team.
Evacuations
The White River Fire started Monday, Aug. 17, on the Mt. Hood National Forest in Wasco County and is located 13 miles southwest of Government Camp in the White River drainage near Forest Road 48. It was ignited by lightning, according to incident command.
Level 1 “get ready” evacuation notices were first issued Saturday, Aug. 22. Mandatory evacuations (Level 3 GO) notices followed Thursday, Aug. 27, first for Pine Grove, then east of the Bear Springs Ranger Station along Highway 216.
Area residents Diana and Randy, who asked their last names not be published due to privacy concerns, were evacuated — the first time — on Thursday, leaving their home on Highway 216 as the flames approached to about “five football fields away,” said Randy.
They parked that night in a gravel pit not far from the fire, but were then evacuated again Friday morning to make room for firefighting vehicles staging in the area.
Diana said they have lived in the area five years, and this is the first incident where they have been evacuated from a fire. “It’s a little scary, you don’t know what’s going to happen,” she said. Neighbors had trouble getting their cattle out, she said, and two cows were killed on the highway as they were moved away from the fire.
A Red Cross shelter, originally established at Maupin High School, was moved Friday to Madras, noted Diana. “We don’t want to go all the way to Madras,” she said, the couple choosing instead to park their trailer in a gravel area just off Highway 26 near Maupin.
FEMA funding
On Thursday, FEMA authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the White River Fire, according to a FEMA press release. The White River Fire was at that time one of nine fires burning in Oregon, and was 10 percent contained.
FEMA Region 10 Deputy Administrator Vincent Maykovich approved the funding request after determining the fire “threatened to cause such destruction as would constitute a major disaster.”
Conflagration
On Friday, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown declared the fire a conflagration, opening the door to additional state resources to fight the fire, which is now under unified command by the Pacific Northwest Incident Management Team 3 and the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office Red Team, according to incident managers.
Firefighters and air resources are actively engaged in the suppression of the fire. The community closest to the fire is Sportsman’s Park.
On Aug. 24, a pilot flying a Type 1 K-MAX helicopter on the White River Fire was killed while conducting bucket drops to help battle the blaze. The helicopter was a private contractor aircraft operating under a Call When Needed agreement with federal agencies.
Wasco County Sheriff’s Office and USDA Forest Service responded to the crash by sending air and ground resources to the scene. The crash site is in rugged terrain.
“Yesterday, we lost a member of our firefighting family in a tragic helicopter crash,” said Glenn Casamassa, Regional Forester for the Pacific Northwest Region of the USDA Forest Service, in a U.S. Forest Service press release at the time. “We convey our deepest sympathy to the family, incident management team, firefighters, friends and emergency responders involved. The courage to selflessly protect lives and property are respected and admired. Their ultimate sacrifice will not be forgotten. Firefighting is dangerous work and risk is well known to those who fight the flames. We honor, we remember, we support the families and their loved ones. We affirm that we are a community and that the family is part of the firefighting family as well.”
A temporary flight restriction was put in effect over the area to protect firefighter safety.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration have been notified and the USDA Forest Service will be working with the National Transportation Safety Board to investigate further.
“We don’t ever forget those people that are protecting our public lands and are on the front lines for us and our local communities,” said Wasco County Sheriff Lane Magill.
A Critical Incident Stress Management team will be assisting firefighters working on the incident.
Residents and visitors in the area are asked to respect area road, recreation site and trail closures surrounding the fire. Wasco County residents can register for Wasco County Citizen Alert at member.everbridge.net/index/453003085612392#/login.
All emergency information including evacuations will be distributed through the citizen alert system.
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