A weekend lightning storm ignited several small fires on Siuslaw National Forest, including three in the Rock Creek watershed near Marys Peak.
Joanie Schmidgall, Siuslaw National Forest public affairs officer, reported that quick responses by firefighters in strategic locations kept the fires small.
Wildfire preparedness event set for July 23 in Philomath
Philomath Fire and Rescue invites the community to a wildfire preparedness community event at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Philomath City Park. The event, which will last approximately one hour, will include information on how residents can prepare themselves, protect property and how to respond to emerging incidents. Organizers will also set aside time for those…
“Resource sharing and coordination with neighboring agencies proved instrumental to success during the initial attack phase,” Schmidgall said through a press release. “As of today, all fires are contained and controlled within established containment lines.”
Local firefighting resources along with smoke jumpers deployed Saturday to the South Fork Fire, the largest of the three in the Rock Creek watershed.
“This marked the first time on record smokejumpers responded to a fire on the Siuslaw National Forest,” Schmidgall reported. “The fire was contained at three-fourths of an acre.”
Firefighters received additional aid from a scooper plane and a helicopter dropping water. “Measures were taken to preserve the watershed while aggressively suppressing the fire and no retardant was used,” Schmidgall added.
Two smaller unnamed fires were each contained at one-tenth of an acre and called “out” when firefighters could no longer detect heat or smoke within the fire perimeter, officials said.
The Siuslaw National Forest thanked the City of Corvallis and the Oregon Department of Forestry for assisting and cooperating at the scene over the past several days.
Elsewhere, the Velvet Creek fire, located in the Indian Creek watershed east of Florence, broke out on steep ground in mature timber. The 2-acre fire was 100% lined with fire line and hose lays, officials said.
“The Siuslaw National Forest appreciates the rapid response and ongoing assistance from the local Deadwood Fire Department to keep the fire small,” Schmidgall wrote in the release. “Mop-up operations are expected to conclude within the next few days.”