By Sarah Hunsberger
The Oregonian (Portland, Oregon)
Copyright 2006 The Oregonian
All Rights Reserved
ESTACADA, Ore. — This season’s first major wildfire in the Portland area was fully contained near Estacada by Monday afternoon.
The 60-acre George fire was reported Sunday about eight miles east of Estacada in the Eagle Creek area.
Fireworks, including “quite an abundance” of Roman candles and other illegal devices, left debris at the fire site and were believed to have started the fire, said Rod Nichols, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Forestry, which led firefighting efforts.
A fire investigator was at the scene Monday but did not completed an investigation, so the cause was still unofficial, Nichols said.
The fire started on private timberland that had been logged and replanted but was still littered with highly flammable brush and debris. The fire spread to include areas of thick timber but didn’t threaten homes.
An air tanker and a helicopter helped calm the fire Sunday. On Monday, firefighters used shovels to dig fire lines around the burning area.
Among those working on the fire were inmate crews from the South Fork Forest Camp, a minimum-security prison camp east of Tillamook.
A fire watch was to remain on the scene Monday night, and four hand crews, two water trucks and two fire engines were to complete mop-up this morning.
-- Sarah Hunsberger