Joint Information Center Fire Update August 27, 2018

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Information for Southwest Oregon Fires is available at the Joint Information Center (JIC) at 541-474-5305 7 AM – 8 PM.

Email:  swofireinfo@gmail.com; 

Blogspot:   http://swojic.blogspot.com

Fire Summary (as reported on at 9:00 a.m. August 27  )
FIRE NAME	ACRES	CONTAINMENT	PERSONNEL
TAYLOR CREEK FIRE	52,838	95%	390
KLONDIKE	89,579	37%	1046
NATCHEZ	25,199	70%	504
MILES COLUMBUS	35,741 10,226	54% 56%	317 Combined
RAMSEY CANYON	1,971	40%	942

WEATHER

Strong, gusty northeast winds are predicted today.  Sunny weather will continue with slightly lower temperatures today, warmer and drier conditions will return to the fire area on Tuesday. There is no rain or lightning forecasted in the near future.

SMOKE
Due to the northerly winds and containment of many areas on the larger fires, many areas are still experiencing improved air quality and visibility. Coastal areas may see an increase of smoke with the current weather pattern. Air quality can be checked at:  http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/

EVACUATIONS

More info about evacuation levels and preparedness can be found at http://www.rvem.org.

Josephine County current evacuation information is available at the Josephine County Sheriff’s website at http://www.co.josephine.or.us/News.asp?SectionID=180.

Jackson County current evacuation information is available at the Jackson County Sheriff’s website at http://jacksoncountyor.org/sheriff/News.

Douglas County current evacuation information is available at the Douglas County Sheriff’s website at http://www.dcso.com/#.

Information about fire evacuation levels is also available from the Joint Information Center at 541-474-5305.

Evacuees seeking assistance can contact the American Red Cross at (888) 680-1455.

CLOSURES

TAYLOR CREEK/KLONDIKE

The Rogue River-Siskiyou NF Taylor Creek Fire Emergency Area Closure Order 06-10-22-18-62 closes national forest lands near the Taylor Creek Fire for public health and safety. Effective July 19, 2018 through October 31, 2018, unless sooner rescinded. Detailed information and a map of the area closure are available at https://tinyurl.com/RRSiskiyou.

A temporary forest closure order is in effect for the area around the Klondike Fire. Forest Roads 4103, 4105, 2512, and 2402-676 remain closed. Information on current conditions can be found at the Rogue River National Forest website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/rogue-siskiyou/alerts-notices.

NATCHEZ

Closure orders are in effect on Klamath National Forest and Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest within the vicinity of the Natchez Fire. A closure order was issued August 5th, effective until the Natchez Fire is declared out. For details of the closure order please go to the Klamath

National Forest Website at www.fs.usda.gov/klamath.

HENDRIX

The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest Hendrix Fire Area Closure for the southern portion of the Siskiyou Mountains Ranger District remains in effect. Detailed information and a map of the area closure are available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/rogue-siskiyou.

KLAMATHON

An area closure remains in effect for BLM lands southeast of Ashland, Oregon including a portion of the Soda Mountain Wilderness https://tinyurl.com/KlamathonClosure. The Pacific Crest Trail is open in the Soda Mountain Wilderness and Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, while the Lone Pilot Trail remains closed. A map of the closure is available at http://tinyurl.com/KlamathonClosureMap.

MILES AND COLUMBUS

An Emergency Road and Area Fire Closure has been issued by the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. All portions of the Forest west of Forest Roads 68 near the northern boundary and all of 6640 are closed. This area is bounded on the south by BLM and private land, to the north and west by the Umpqua National Forest and to the east by open portions of the Rogue River- Siskiyou National Forest.

The Umpqua National Forest has implemented emergency road and trail closures on the Tiller Ranger District because of the South Umpqua Complex. The order includes previous closures on the Diamond Lake Ranger District and North Umpqua Ranger District to create a current and comprehensive list. More information is available at:  https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/umpqua/alerts-notices.

PUBLIC MEETINGS

There are no public meetings scheduled at this time.

LINKS TO SPECIFIC INCIDENTS

Klondike-- https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5998/

Natchez-- https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5948/

Taylor Creek-- https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6058/

Miles/Columbus-- https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5966/

Ramsey Canyon-- https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6167/

When you want to help….

In a time of crisis people naturally want to reach out and help.  We appreciate those efforts and have a few suggestions for you to consider.

Most appreciated by firefighters:

●      Thank you notes and banners

●      Donation information:  http://www.roguevalley.recovers.org

●      Donations to Wildland Firefighter Foundation:  http://www.wffoundation.org

Other ideas:

●      Join or support your local fire department or emergency organizations- they appreciate your generosity since they are the first responders in many cases.

●      Donate to local charitable organizations like the Red Cross.

●      Donate to local food banks, which sometimes get forgotten when fires impact a community.

●      Create and maintain a defensible space around your home!  Give emergency responders and yourself a safe area to defend your home in or retreat to, if necessary.

Note: Fire camps cannot accept food items due to health and federal contract regulations.  We feed our assigned fire crews three meals a day plus snacks.