OFFICER BRENT LARSON was patrolling in The Dalles Watershed Wednesday, Sept. 4, when he spotted a fire burning in a broken snag three-tenths of a mile inside the perimeter of the fire containment lines.
All evacuations for the Government Flats Complex fire are expected to be lifted by Monday night, Wasco County Sheriff Rick Eiesland said. Evacuation orders are in place along Ketchum Road, Upper Mill Creek past the 9500 block, and Vinsel Road, Eiesland said. He will meet with fire officials at 4 p.m. today (Monday) for final word on evacuations. “If it continues to stay overcast and rain, then they should be good to lift the restrictions and have people return to their homes,” Eiesland said.
More than a week later, the Blackburn Fire is still burning. What began as a lightning strike during the early morning hours of Aug. 16 has swelled to an 11,728-acre conflagration that has consumed four homes and nine outbuildings as of Friday morning. The Blackburn Fire comprises almost the entire size of the Government Flats Complex of three wildfires burning several miles southwest of The Dalles. The other two fires in the complex have been contained for several days.
The public is invited to a Community Meeting, Tuesday, August 20, 6:30 PM, at the Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue, 1400 West 8th Street. Information on the status of the Government Flat Complex Fires will be provided by incident management personnel.
Nighttime fire crews reported a good night on the Government Flats Fire Complex as they returned to camp this morning, Monday, Aug. 19, but the Blackburn Fire remains a challenge.
