By Kimberly Cortez
oregonlive.com
New wildfires continue to spark in Oregon as the state barrels into peak fire season.
The Burdoin, Butte Creek and Greeley Heights fires ignited over the weekend. Several other fires continue to burn, including the Cram fire, declared the largest wildfire in the country.
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Last week, Gov. Tina Kotek declared a state of emergency through the end of the year, noting that warm weather and drought are expected to worsen and extend Oregon’s wildfire season.
Below is a roundup of Oregon’s largest and latest wildfires.
The Cram Fire
The Cram Fire in Jefferson and Wasco counties has expanded significantly since it sparked a week ago. About 95,748 acres have burned, according to Central Oregon Fire.
If 100,00 acres or more are burned, the Cram Fire could be classified as a “mega fire.”
The good news: the fire is 73% contained, with cooler, calmer weather allowing firefighters to improve their control over the blaze.
Minimal smoke is now being observed from the fire’s perimeter, officials said. Nightly operations are scanning for and putting out hotspots and flare-ups that could threaten containment lines.
The wildfire has burned four homes and two other structures, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. Near the west side of the fire’s perimeter, east of Madras in the county, 435 residences remain threatened.
Additional Level 2 (Get set) evacuation orders were issued in Jefferson County to the east of the fire. In Wasco County, all evacuation orders were downgraded to Level 1 (Be ready).
The Burdoin Fire
The Burdoin fire burning on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge has grown to 10,730 acres and is 0% contained, fire officials said. It ignited Friday and since then has destroyed 14 homes and damaged 37, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center.
The fire is actively burning on both sides of the Klickitat River. The Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office issued Level 3 (Go now) evacuation orders from the west corner of the fire near the Tracey Hill area to the east near Oliver Point.
One firefighter has been injured, according to the Southeast Washington Interagency Incident Management Team. No details about the injury have been released.
The Butte Creek and Greeley Heights fires
The Butte Creek fire, burning 30 miles northwest of Madras, also started Friday, this one on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation. It has grown to 2,000 acres and is 5% contained, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center. No homes have been burned.
Strong winds pushed the fire southeast, but crews have made progress in fighting the blaze, leading the evacuation order to be downgraded to Level 1 (Be ready), according to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Fire Management.
As firefighters were battling the Butte Creek fire on Saturday, the Greeley Heights fire sparked just 20 miles south in Warm Springs, an unincorporated community on the reservation. The fire prompted Level 3 (Go now) evacuation orders to be issued near Mt. Jefferson Street.
The Greeley Heights fire has burned 381 acres and is 0% contained, but fire crews were able to decrease fire activity in key areas, leading evacuation orders to be downgraded to Level 1 (Be ready), according to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Fire Management.
The Warm Springs Police Department told people to remain aware of the fires and to prepare supplies and an escape plan in case conditions worsen.
Other wildfires in the state
Several other wildfires that were growing last week are now completely or somewhat contained. The Highland, Willow and Long Point fires were contained successfully over the weekend, fire officials said.
Crews were able to increase containment of the Elk and Hagelstein fires in Klamath County , leading all evacuation orders to be lifted by the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office.
The Elk fire has burned 2,640 acres and is 88% contained; the Hagelstein fire has burned 672 acres and is 45% contained.
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