Let me start by saying I have no experience with wildland fires. I also have no blogging experience, so this should be interesting. I know Oregon has what we call a fire season, which is during the warmer and drier summer months, and I hear about fires as they happen in the Willamette Valley because our inmate fire crews go out each time to assist the Oregon Department of Forestry.
The closest I’ve come to a wildland fire was last summer
when I went to go on my weekly hike with my dogs above Niagara, Oregon. I had heard on the news that traffic on the
freeway was backed up on Highway 22 east of Salem, Oregon and west of Detroit,
Oregon for a fire near Big Cliff Dam.
(Photo by Jen Velez, USFS)
This fire started on the Fourth of July so the first thing
everyone considered was it was caused by fireworks. It was a couple of days after the fire
started that I went for my hike. I didn’t
know if my hiking spot was burned or if I would even be able to get up there
because the fire crews were still in the area.
Lucky for me, my favorite spot was not harmed; however, it was probably
fifteen minutes away from catching fire had the fire crews not reacted
quickly. I could smell the burnt
vegetation, even though the fire was completely out. I did run into a few gentlemen who were up
there monitoring the area and conducting an investigation. I assumed from the location of the start of
the fire that it was a bottle rocket (firework) that was shot into the air and
got carried by the wind. The men said
they could not confirm my suspicions because they were still conducting an
investigation, so I didn’t ask any more questions relating to the fire.
That was the last I had heard about the fire. Since I had to do a blogspot on this fire I
had to do some research. I found out
that on the first day the fire burned 30 acres on the first day and jumped to
over 60 acres the next day. In total,
the fire burned approximately 79 acres. It
took approximately 180 fire personnel including five helicopters and two
tankers to extinguish the fire.
(Photo: Ashley Smith, Statesman
Journal)
In reading the article, “Niagara fire near Detroit 80 percent
contained”, from the Statesman Journal, I found out that there was a
containment crew up there after the fire was considered extinguished because
they didn’t want the fire to re-ignite. Rod
Nichols, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Forestry, said hot spots that
are invisible to the eye can re-ignite with the help of heat and wind, so they
had to monitor the area the entire summer.
(Photo by Dave Wells, ODF)
I was looking through my pictures I took during that time because
I went to the top of Natural Arches and was able to see part of the burn. Although I did take a picture of it, I cannot
find it anywhere. I then went to Google
Earth because I remember seeing the full view of the burn, except they have
taken that part down and made it like it was before. I also went to Google Maps hoping to see if
they have an updated view of the area, and they don’t. So what I have to leave you with is what
Google Maps has to offer and a little red ring provided by me, to show you the
approximate area of the burn.
References
Johnson, Joce. “Crews Step up Efforts as Wildfire
Near Detroit Lake Grows”. Statesman Journal. 5 July 2015. http://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/2015/07/05/firefighters-continue-battle-acre-blaze-near-detroit-lake/29736649/.
3 April 2016.
Roemeling, Alisha. “Niagara Fire Near Detroit 80
Percent Contained”. Statesman Journal. 9 July 2015. http://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/2015/07/08/crews-chipping-away-niagara-fire-near-detroit/29869143/.
3 April 2016.
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