Governor Invokes Conflagration Act for Elk Fire in Klamath County

Bonanza, Oregon- The Oregon State Fire Marshal is deploying multiple structural task forces and its Red Incident Management Team to support the response to the Elk Fire burning in Klamath County, about eight miles north of Bonanza. The fire, which was reported Tuesday morning, rapidly grew to approximately 2,000 acres and is threatening homes and critical infrastructure.

The Klamath County Sheriff’s Office has issued Level 1 (Be Ready), Level 2 (Be Set), and Level 3 (Go Now) evacuation notices for communities near the blaze. The American Red Cross has opened an evacuation shelter at Living Springs Church, located at 31897 Mission Street in Bonanza.

The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for the area through Wednesday evening. Conditions remain critically dry, and high temperatures are forecast to remain in the mid to upper 90s through the week, raising the risk for rapid fire growth.

To bolster the local firefighting effort, five structural task forces are being dispatched by the State Fire Marshal. Two are scheduled to arrive Wednesday evening, with three more arriving early Thursday morning. The State Fire Marshal’s Red Incident Management Team will operate in unified command with the Oregon Department of Forestry’s Incident Management Team 1 and will receive a full briefing Wednesday evening.

“This latest round of lightning and continued dry conditions in Southern Oregon has kept the Oregon fire service and our wildland partners extremely busy,” State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. “The extended forecast is not going to provide any relief. Please pay attention to our critical wildfire conditions and take the necessary steps to prevent sparking a human-caused fire.”

Evacuation details and a real-time map are available online at https://protect.genasys.com/search.