Oregon’s wildfire season is now in full swing across the state with all Oregon Department of Forestry districts officially entering fire season as of July 1. The announcement comes as officials warn residents and visitors to exercise extreme caution during the upcoming Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Michael Curran, Fire Protection Division chief for the Oregon Department of Forestry, emphasized the urgency of fire prevention measures as the state braces for increasingly dangerous fire conditions.
“We have already experienced several large fires in the state this year and anticipate fire behavior to be progressively more volatile,” Curran said. “Right now is the time to practice fire prevention and preparedness.”
With Independence Day celebrations approaching, forestry officials are reminding the public that fireworks and forests are a dangerous combination. Private fireworks use is prohibited on all forest land, including private lands protected by ODF and all state and federal forest lands throughout Oregon. Residents are also advised to check for additional restrictions imposed by their local cities and counties.
The fire season declaration affects all residents and visitors across Oregon’s 16 million acres of protected land. Fire season is declared locally when environmental conditions create significant risk for fires to start and spread rapidly.
This year’s fire season began early, with Southwest Oregon becoming the first district to declare on June 1. ODF’s West District, which includes the Philomath area, declared back on June 16.. The North Cascade District was the final area to enter fire season on July 1.
Curran stressed that prevention remains the most effective tool for protecting lives and property while reducing firefighting costs and risks to emergency responders.
“Prevention is our No. 1 tool to reduce property loss, firefighting costs and risk to the lives of our firefighters,” he said. “We can’t prevent lightning fires, but we can prevent human-caused fires.”