Wildfires 2014

And now the smoke is filtering in to where I live. I better check and make sure none the smoke has Oregon particles :)
 
Rains end campfire ban in much of Central Oregon
Forest Service, BLM ease fire restrictions
By Dylan J. Darling / The Bulletin
Published Sep 27, 2014 at 12:02AM


Federal land managers in Central Oregon lifted campfire and smoking restrictions Friday in response to recent rains along with the change in season.
The U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management removed restrictions for the Deschutes National Forest, Crooked River National Grassland and the Prineville District of the BLM.
The restrictions had been in place since July 25 .
“ Overall conditions are looking really good,” said Lisa Clark, spokeswoman for the BLM in Prineville.
The Ochoco National Forest lifted campfire restrictions earlier this month.
Such restrictions on lands overseen by the BLM will remain in place until Tuesday for part of the John Day River and Oct. 15 for stretches of the Lower Deschutes, Crooked and White rivers.
“That’s just because those places have just such high recreation use,” Clark said.
The agencies also are lifting equipment restrictions on permitted operations such as logging and woodcutting.
Loggers and woodcutters are now allowed to use chainsaws at any time in designated parts of the woods. There had been a partial shutdown for loggers and woodcutters in effect.
Despite the lifting of restrictions, Clark said wildfire season isn’t completely over. The end typically doesn’t come in Central Oregon until there has been a string of days with rain or snow....
 
Wildfire season winds down in Central Oregon

"Over the past five years Oregon and Washington have averaged 3,354 fires per year which burned an average of 514,359 acres per year, according to annual reports by the center. During the 2014 wildfire season, the Northwest was the top national priority for firefighters a record-setting 43 days, according to statistics from the center. In all there were more than 3,200 reported fires this year in Oregon and Washington. The fires burned more than 1.25 million acres, with more than 842,000 acres charred in Oregon and over 413,000 acres blackened in Washington."
Bend Bulletin, 5-Oct, 2014
 
Mark, we've been knocking around Central Oregon for the past week+, and everything I've seen is drier than a popcorn fart. I would not have even considered a fire when we were down around Fort Rock, and the no fires signs were still up to boot. I think we could bring unemployment figures down by putting a lot of people out thinning the undergrowth. There's a lot of biomass there that would be better utilized in producing power or other products, versus fueling a crown to crown inferno.
 
Wandering Sagebrush said:
I think we could bring unemployment figures down by putting a lot of people out thinning the undergrowth.
Click to expand...
I am on a Forest Service Fire Crew up in Washington and have been thinning thousands of acres when we are not on a fire (and when it is safe to). It helps but due to clearcuts and mismanagement of land (ie no wild fires) there is no way to really make a difference other than a massive fire. The wilderness in our district is a giant inpeneratable tinder box and there is nothing we can do to when it pops off other to stand back.
 
Very sad. They won't confirm the pilots death but I don't think anyone has ever walked away from a tanker crash.


A resident caught it on camera. Its on Pirate if you really must see, kinda wish I hadn't.
 
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