BRAD CAIN
Associated Press Writer
MONUMENT, Ore. (AP) -- Fires bore down on two small ranching towns in northeastern Oregon on Thursday as crews across the West faced literally thousands of new blazes sparked by lightning strikes in parched forests and grasslands.
Wildfires were burning across a half-million acres in 10 states by Thursday afternoon. The National Interagency Fire Center said 21,000 firefighters were fighting 42 major fires; Oregon accounted for more than half of that, with 11 fires burning 270,000 acres.
``Our primary concern is getting additional crews,'' said David Widmark of the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center in Portland. ``From a weather standpoint, it looks grim,'' with gusting winds and lightning predicted over parts of Oregon and Washington.
Some help was on the way. Three hundred fresh firefighters arrived Thursday at the NIFC's base in Boise, Idaho, for deployment. More than 100 crews have been brought in from Alaska and other parts of the country.
Military liaison Tom Frey said the Pentagon was putting together a list of battalions that could be tapped for fire duty if needed. More than 3,000 soldiers and Marines were mobilized to fight fires last summer.
The West has seen 2,233 new fires burn 641,410 acres since Saturday, an explosion of activity that prompted the fire center to issue its first Level Five alert of the year. That means firefighters are in danger of running out of people and equipment to fight fires.
While the number of fires is a fraction of the 55,000 recorded so far this year in the United States, the acreage accounts for a quarter of everything burned in 2001.
In Oregon, National Guard troops already have been mobilized to help on contained fires, freeing more experienced crews for direct attack, Widmark said.
But the situation still appeared grim Thursday, and much of the focus was on the Oregon towns of Ukiah and Monument.
A blaze outside the ranching community of Ukiah, 40 miles south of Pendleton in northeastern Oregon, nearly doubled in size overnight to 6,200 acres, closing U.S. Highway 395 to all but local traffic.
Outside Monument, 30 miles to the southwest, firefighters beset by 100-degree heat hoped helicopter water drops and the North Fork of the John Day River would keep a 2,500-acre fire out of town while residents stood ready to fight or flee.
Loggers, ranchers, contractors and others have rushed to Monument to help firefighters.
Near Ashland, in southern Oregon, a fire crept through old growth forest harboring seven sites inhabited by threatened northern spotted owls. Firefighters hoped to pinch off the head of the blaze in the next two days, said Marti Graham of the Oregon Department of Forestry.
A fire threatened as many as 100 homes near the Cascades tourist town of Leavenworth, Wash. More than a dozen homes were evacuated as a precaution, and the Bavarian-themed community of about 2,500 was shrouded in smoke.
The largest blaze in Washington state was the Virginia Lake Complex, at more than 43,000 acres. The fire burned at least six, and possibly as many as 12 houses, on Monday.
In Nevada, the Buffalo complex burned 74,000 acres near the town of Midas, where fire crews were stationed to protect the community.
``It's burning all around this place,'' said Midas Saloon and Dinner House owner Les Matson. ``The poor old cows will have a hell of a time finding something to eat.''
Northern California's largest blaze, 50 miles north of Susanville, was contained at 67,700 acres and some of the 900 firefighters were being given a much-needed rest. All lanes of Interstate 80 were opened after parts of the major freeway were closed for three days, and residents of Yuba Gap and Emigrant Gap evacuated earlier in the week were expected to be allowed back home.
