General Information: This will be the last update from Northwest Incident Management Team 8 (NWIMT8), with Incident Commander Kevin Stock. Two local Type 3 organizations will assume management on Thursday 10/15, at 7:00 am in the morning. Incident Commander Jonah Gladney will assume management of the Willamette National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands of the Beachie Creek Fire. Incident Commander Jeremy Goers will assume management of the Mt. Hood National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands of the Riverside Fire. All State and private lands protected by Oregon Department of Forestry will return to the North Cascade District for management.
NWIMT8 would like to take this opportunity to say “thank you” to the communities, cooperators, agency staff and firefighters for the unwavering support during our management of the Riverside and Beachie Creek Fires.
Field work on both the Beachie and Riverside Fires continues to be repairing of fire lines, patrolling and mop-up when conditions allow. Recent winds and rains can weaken trees, increasing the danger of them falling. There is a high interest from the public to use much of the fire area, but area closures are in place, which is necessary for the safety of firefighters and the public. Wet roads create unsafe driving and working conditions for all.
State Hwy 22 is now open, with reduced speed limits. Expect intermittent stops as mitigation work continues.
Weather and Fire Behavior: Light showers and winds are expected again today and will give way to higher pressure and more seasonal weather. Temperatures will rise and winds will subside over the next few days creating better conditions for firefighters to access the fire area and complete suppression repair work. The recent wet weather will keep fire behavior to limited creeping and smoldering. Wet conditions can make it difficult and unsafe for firefighters to continue fire suppression repair work.
Evacuations: Current evacuation information for: Marion County is available at www.co.marion.or.us/Alerts?AlertId=83 or by calling 503-588-5032, and for Linn County is available at www.linnsheriff.org/fire_live_updates_sept_2020/ or by calling 541-812-2260.
Closures:Multiple forest and area closures remain in effect for the safety of firefighters and the public. For the most up to date information, see the following websites:
- Mt. Hood National Forest www.fs.usda.gov/detail/mthood/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD811247
- Willamette National Forest www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/willamette/alerts-notices/?aid=61574
- Bureau of Land Management www.blm.gov/programs/public-safety-and-fire/fire-and-aviation/regional-info/oregon-washington/fire-restrictions.
- Oregon Department of Forestry https://www.oregon.gov/odf/fire/pages/restrictions.aspx
- Road Closures on TripCheck: www.tripcheck.com/
- Santiam State Forest is closed
After Wildfire Resources: For information regarding assistance after a wildfire about timber salvage, landowner assistance and replanting see the following website: https://www.oregon.gov/odf/fire/Pages/afterafire.aspx
