Central Oregon – Firefighters have responded to 18 new fires across Central Oregon in the past 24 hours, the largest of which is the Wrentham Market Fire currently estimated at 10,000 acres east of Dufur in Wasco County.
The Wrentham Market Fire was reported on June 29 at 1:30 p.m. on unprotected lands in the Columbia Rural Fire Protection District. The fire is now threatening approximately 20 structures. The fire is mostly burning through wheat and brush and moving towards the Deschutes River. The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office issued Level 3 evacuation notices yesterday for homes in the area impacting 70-100 people.
The Rattlesnake Fire burned approximately 100 acres on the Warm Springs Reservation in grass, brush and juniper before jumping the Deschutes River and growing to an estimated 1,500 acres on Prineville BLM managed lands, moving northeast towards Highway 97. The Rattlesnake Fire is now under the unified command of Warm Springs Incident Commander Lionel Smith and Type 3 Central Oregon Fire Management Service (COFMS) Incident Commander Chad Schmidt. Four large air tankers, two Single Engine Air Tankers (SEATs), a heavy helicopter, are responding to the blaze in addition to the Central Oregon Rappellers and Redmond Hotshots.
The Ryegrass Fire is estimated at 100 acres and is east of the Maury Mountain and south of the Paulina Highway on Prineville District BLM lands. A hotshot crew and 3 engines are responding. The fire is 0% contained at this time.
Firefighters are also responding to a new incident (#460) near Pringle Falls Campground northwest of La Pine on the Deschutes National Forest. La Pine Rural Fire Protection District is engaged in structure protection while Forest Service engines and crews work to contain the fire. There is no estimate on size or containment at this time.
Lightning is forecasted to continue through midnight (12:00 a.m.) and crews continue to respond to smoke reports and pick up new starts across Central Oregon tonight.
For up-to-date information on Central Oregon fires, visit: www.twitter.com/CentralORFire
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