Grasshopper Fire burns homes last week, Wasco County Fair relocates livestock events

A total of 221 homes in Wasco County remain under Level 3 “Go Now” notices while 911 homes were under Level 2 “Be Set” notices.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal once again assumed unified command of the fire last Wednesday, but this time with the Southern Area Blue Incident Management Team, alongside staff from Australia and New Zealand. Jon Wallace, operations section chief with the southern team, explained how the Texas Canyon Hotshots, the Petersburg Rangeland Fire Protection Association and local farmers worked in tandem to ultimately secure the northeast corner during a community meeting in Dufur on Thursday, Aug. 13. 

“Above Winslow Road and around Winslow Road, they made really good progress,” Wallace said. “Through a combination of efforts, they got line all around this and back down to Friend Road.” 

By that point, the fire’s eastern edge and southeast corner had become priority. Activity increased Thursday afternoon near the Tygh Creek headwaters, approximately two miles northwest of Shadybrook Road. Subsequent retardant drops and tactical firing operations helped prevent further spread into Tygh Valley. 

Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue Chief David Jensen also thanked local resources during Thursday’s community meeting. 

“Your chiefs, especially down here in these departments, they really care a lot about you guys,” Jensen said. “They know what it is to be in a level three evacuation because their homes are in them, too, so I think you should be really proud of them.” 

Jensen noted that Hood River and Wasco counties deployed tasks forces both for last Monday’s surge and when the fire originally ignited, some of which came directly from the Eightmile Fire just to the north. Additionally, the Oregon Department of Forestry’s unit in The Dalles played a critical role in establishing southern containment line above Pine Hollow and Sportman’s Park, which are still holding.

Overall containment numbers for the fire started rising last Friday, primarily due to work in the Highway 35 corridor. The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office lifted its Level 3 evacuation orders the following day, but Mt. Hood Meadows had already announced its closure for the rest of summer, citing the evacuation orders, forest closure and intermittent travel allowed on Highway 35 (which is now open). 

“While the Grasshopper Fire has not made much progress towards Meadows in recent days, it is still an active and challenging wildfire — both in terms of its behavior and the terrain it is in. Due to this, there is no clear timeline as to when the restrictions will be lifted,” reads an announcement from the resort. 

And while crews benefited from cooler temperatures and even some wetting rains on the fire’s west side over the weekend, near-critical fire weather was anticipated on Monday and Tuesday. For comprehensive list of emergency and recovery-related resources in Wasco County, click here.

Fair continues, in part

“The main consideration was public safety,” said Wasco County Fair Board Member Ken Polehn. “If we had to evacuate, we’d be looking at a couple hundred animals or more, plus two or three thousand people jamming up an old county road.” 

During an emergency meeting last Tuesday evening, Polehn and others opted to cancel the Wasco County Fair. Before it even ended, Level 3 evacuation notices were issued for part of Shadybrook Road, just northwest of the fairgrounds, and the Grasshopper Fire continued to push closer in the days to follow. 

Organizers immediately got in motion, however. After receiving offers from multiple counties, the local FFA chapter and 4-H clubs were setting up at the Hood River County Fairgrounds last Thursday for three days of livestock events and awards (the rodeo and derby have yet to be rescheduled). On Friday morning, sheep bleated as young tenders gave them a final shave and blow dry while the steers got rinsed, shampooed and conditioned — some more accepting than others. 

“It would have been pretty devastating for some of the families and the kids because of the investment they have in the animal they’re showing,” Polehn said, if the livestock portion didn’t get moved. “It’s not cheap. It’s not like baseball where you show up, pay a fee and maybe some gas money.” 

Jacey Calloway, member of Wasco County Outlaws 4-H, had two sheep, Sandy and Almond, to be sold for market at the fair. While she understood the board’s decision, it was still difficult not to feel dismayed after the news initially broke. 

“I was frustrated because we put in a lot of work,” Calloway said. “We got them at the end of winter, and I had to work with them every day. It takes a long time to get them trained, and we spent a lot of money on food.” 

She was excited come Friday, though, as were many other kids running around the fairgrounds. The swine show kicked things off, followed by goats and poultry. As small animals took the stage, Madeline Harvey was in the middle of washing her steer, Hamburger Lecter, before she applied hair spray and fluffed up his tail. 

“He’s very judgmental right now,” Harvey said.

Although Hamburger Lecter had a mild disposition when purchased, he did not appreciate the wash rack or getting into Harvey’s trailer. This was her first time showing a steer at fair, and Harvey was worried that something would happen when she stepped into the ring, but more so, her mind was elsewhere. She lives in Friend, which the Grasshopper Fire made a big push toward last Monday. 

“I’m more concerned about my house than the fair,” Harvey said. “They stopped it before it crossed the road, but it was still like 20 feet away.”