Hot weather, gusty winds and extreme lightning activity have spread critical fire conditions across parts of Oregon, fueling the Durkee Fire in the eastern part of the state, the nation’s largest active fire.
Lightning sparked the fire about five miles southwest of Durkee, Ore., in the morning hours of July 17. Since then, winds of up to 60 mph have blown the fire across more than 268,000 acres, or about 419 square miles, near the Oregon-Idaho border.
The about 500 residents of the city of Huntington, Ore., had been urged to leave as the fire moved in Sunday, and utilities shut off power, gas and cellphone service. But by Wednesday night, the evacuation alert had been reduced to a level one out of three, indicating residents should remain ready to flee, if necessary. Sheriff Travis Ash of Baker County, which is home to about 17,000 people and includes Huntington, said rain falling on the Durkee Fire on Wednesday evening was a “godsend.”
Advertisement
But rain was not reaching enough of the state. Among more than 100 active fires across Oregon, the Cow Valley, Lone Rock and Falls fires had also each burned more than 100,000 acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
After more than a week of firefighting efforts with a crew of more than 500 people, the fire remained zero percent contained as of Thursday morning, and evacuation orders were in effect along the Interstate 84 corridor of northeastern Oregon. Evacuation orders were also in effect in northern parts of Malheur County, which is home to about 31,000 people.
No deaths had been reported, but dozens of structures, including some homes, were destroyed.
“We are facing strong erratic winds over the region that could impact all fires,” Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) said in a statement. “Rain is not getting through. Some communities do not have power.”
Advertisement
The Durkee merged with the Cow Valley Fire as fires multiplied across the region. Some 2,800 lightning strikes observed Wednesday caused more than 60 new fire starts, satellite imagery showed, according to the National Weather Service.
It was one of Oregon’s most extreme days of lightning ever observed, with the most strikes recorded in a single day since 2000 and the ninth-most recorded during July, the Weather Service said.
Conditions are not expected to ease until Sunday or Monday, according to firefighting reports that warned new ignitions from more storms will be “difficult to contain.” Officials said fire suppression efforts “are expected to moderate perimeter growth” along the fire’s southeastern and southwestern flanks by Sunday.
Red flag warnings, indicating high fire risks from strong winds, high heat and low moisture, were in effect across parts of southern Oregon and southern Idaho.
Advertisement
Temperatures are forecast to reach the triple digits across the region’s valleys, the Weather Service said, amid what has been a historically unrelenting heat wave. Boise was poised to set a record for consecutive days at or above 100 degrees Thursday, at nine days and counting.
“We are working with every tool we have to protect people and property,” Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said in a statement. “The Oregon structural fire service, our out-of-state firefighters, and our wildland partners are working relentlessly around the clock.”
Air quality alerts were in effect across the eastern half of Oregon as wildfire smoke brought high levels of particulate matter. Smoke was likely to get trapped in valleys Friday and Saturday, meteorologists warned.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7uK3SoaCnn6Sku7G70q1lnKedZMSmrdOhnKtnYmV%2FdXuPcGZrbV%2BZwrO3xJ5kn6GimnqwvsSgpqdlnZa9br%2FPq5yanF2qvaWt056qaA%3D%3D