Oregon fires merge into infernoCrews in southwest Oregon have been lighting "burnout" fires like this one, near the town of O'Brien, in a bid to rob a massive wildfire of new fuel.(picture at URL)
Aug. 8 -- U.S. Forest Service workers often toil well after a wildfire to prevent later flooding and mudslides. NBC's Roger O'Neil reports.
Thousands of firefighters also battle major blaze in California
MSNBC STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
Aug. 8 — Two prolonged Oregon wildfires merged overnight to create a 300,000-acre inferno as nearly 5,200 firefighters put up defensive lines, the National Interagency Fire Center reported Thursday. In Southern California, meanwhile, 3,100 firefighters were trying to protect property from a fire that’s destroyed 27 homes and forced 1,000 residents to flee. Together, the two hotspots are absorbing three-quarters of the entire firefighting force across the West.
THE OREGON fire, burning inside the Siskiyou National Forest, was only 15 percent contained Thursday morning, as crews built fire lines on three flanks. A “red flag” warning was posted Thursday in the area, alerting crews to expect gusty northeast winds and low humidity — natural ingredients for fanning the fire.
The Illinois Valley’s 17,000 residents remained under an evacuation advisory, and some 220 homes in the Rogue River area were also warned of advancing flames. The communities of Cave Junction, Kerby, Selma, Agness and Gardner Ranch, as well as the McCaleb Ranch Boy Scout Camp, were described as threatened. Firefighters and sheriff’s deputies have been going door-to-door advising people to be ready to leave
. The fires, the southern flank of which has spread into northern California, have been burning since July 13.
SAN DIEGO-AREA FIRE GROWS
In Southern California, several hundred more firefighters joined a fire line 60 miles northeast of San Diego. The blaze, which had grown to nearly 54,000 acres by Thursday, has forced 1,000 residents from several towns to flee and destroyed 27 homes. Eight of those were lost over the last 24 hours. Ninety-five other structures have been destroyed as well.
Some 3,100 firefighters are now battling the blaze, which was 60 percent contained.
Officials hope to have it under control by Sunday.
“As it heads toward the desert, the fuel becomes pretty sparse,” said Abby O’Leary, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry. “In the foothills, there’s still quite a bit of plants, but as it starts moving northeast ... it possibly could burn itself out.”
Local wildfire coverage
• Springfield, Ore.: New towns in line of fire
• Portland, Ore.: Resort town told to prepare
• San Diego: More crews brought in
• Durango, Colo.: Chief of staff defends stance on aidAs a As a precaution, the rural town of Warner Springs, population 1,200, was partly evacuated, while 70 people were told to leave the Los Coyotes Indian Reservation. The 340 residents of Ranchita were evacuated earlier.
And in Borrego Springs, elderly residents who might suffer from smoky air were also urged to leave. The blaze started July 29 when a National Guard helicopter clipped a power line while looking for marijuana plants in the rugged, isolated area. A severe drought — the San Diego area has seen just three inches of rain this year, 30 percent of normal — has made conditions ripe for wildfires.
FIREFIGHTER DIES
The fire season also claimed another life. The National Interagency Fire Center reported Thursday that a South Dakota volunteer firefighter who sustained injuries in a fire there had passed away on Tuesday, bringing to 20 the number of firefighters killed this summer.
Nearly 4.8 million acres have burned in the United States so far this year, almost three times the number last year and more than double the average for the last decade.
What was that saying...Oh yah.."An eye for an eye and an eco-viralist for a firefighter!"
EBUCK