ODF reports firefighters have spent most of Wednesday aggressively engaged on numerous fires across the Oregon Department of Forestry Southwest Oregon District’s protection area within the Medford Unit in Jackson County following early morning thunderstorms. The majority of lightning strikes landed on the east side of the county, although a few were recorded in the valley near Talent.
While 11 fires were reported throughout the morning, five were either duplicate reports or not smoke or fire. Two were on Forest Service land, which crews responded with federal partners to, affecting both the U.S. Forest Service- Klamath National Forest and the U.S. Forest Service- Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. The final four reports were found to be legitimate fires on ODF protection area, three affecting Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land and one on private:
• The Coon Creek Fire, located to the southeast of Lake Creek Reservoir on private land. This fire was caught at 1/10th of an acre. It is 100% lined and mopped up.
• The Conde Creek Fire, located to the northwest of Howard Prairie Lake on BLM land. This fire was caught 1/100th of an acre. It is 100% lined and mopped up.
• The Clarks Creek Fire, located to the southeast of Lost Creek Lake on BLM land. This fire was caught at 1/100th of an acre. It is 100% lined and mopped up.
• The North Fork Clark Creek Fire, located near to the north of the Clark Creek Fire on BLM land. This fire was caught at 1/10th of an acre. It is 100% lined and mopped up.
Several reconnaissance flights by ODF fixed wing air attack platform have been conducted across the areas affected by lightning; crews continue to monitor areas where lightning struck by air, ground and ODF’s extensive camera detection system. Additional thunderstorms remain in the forecast for the remainder of the day on Wednesday, with Red Flag Warning and heat advisories taking effect across areas of the district through the end of the week.
Firefighters throughout southern Oregon are dedicated to protecting our counties and aggressively attacking fires. ODF says they appreciates the support of partner agencies and communities as crews continue to be vigilant through the end of fire season.
Source: ODF
