Exploding Wildfires Force OR Governor to Invoke Emergency Conflagration Act

Kevin Opsahl

Mail Tribune, Medford, Ore.

(TNS)

Aug. 28—Oregon Gov. Kate Brown invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act after the Rum Creek Fire more than quadrupled in size, ballooning from 1,256 acres Friday morning to 4,700 acres Saturday.

"The Rum Creek Fire grew rapidly overnight, requiring additional resources to battle the fire and support the state's response," Brown said in a prepared statement.

In invoking the Emergency Conflagration Act, Brown determined the Rum Creek Fire poses "a threat to life, safety and property," and "the threat exceeds the firefighting capabilities of local firefighting personnel and equipment." As such, under the law, the state fire marshal will "mobilize firefighters and equipment to assist local resources battling the fire and further support a coordinated response."

The governor's news release said once the fire marshal's Blue Incident Management Team is briefed, it would assume unified command with Oregon Department of Forestry and federal partners. The marshal brought in four additional task forces through the Oregon Fire Mutual Aid System from Douglas, Linn, Clackamas and Lincoln counties to assist in the response.

Mid-Saturday, a public information official handling questions about the Rum Creek Fire said incident commanders could not immediately answer questions, citing a busy response and a briefing underway with the fire marshal.

Since Level 3-Go Now evacuation orders were issued Friday night by the Josephine County Sheriff's Office, the county's emergency management team posted on Facebook Saturday that the orders extended from north of Indian Mary Park and Stratton Creek Road; south of Belknap Gulch and Stratton Creek; east of the Rogue River; and west of Hog Creek Road and Hog Creek.

In a Saturday online video briefing on the Rum Creek Fire, John Spencer, a field operator with Northwest Team 13, did not discuss the fire marshal response, discussing crews' plan of attack for Saturday and beyond.

"Mother Nature threw a punch at us and we've had some rapid changes to our fire footprint on the landscape," Spencer said.

He added that the fire would move Saturday, causing "a dynamic environment." He assured the public that "crews are ready to get out there and get after it and do a good job."

In Facebook comments to the general public Saturday, Rum Creek Fire officials wrote that "firefighters are remaining engaged on the ground and in the air."

"Extinguishing the fire as quickly as possible, keeping firefighters, citizens and homes safe and protecting natural resources and recreation areas remain the top priorities for all involved," the Facebook post stated. "Steep, dangerous terrain is creating numerous challenges for crews, and while air-tankers and additional aircraft have been used every day, there's a lot of work that needs to be done on the ground as well."

In a Facebook post Saturday morning, the Josephine County Sheriff's Office urged residents to sign up for "citizen alerts" about the fire online if they have not already.

"There are a lot of moving pieces with incidents like this, and we are all trying to keep citizens informed of the latest updates as they become available," the sheriff's office said.

Late Saturday, the Bureau of Land Management, in conjunction with county partners, announced temporarily closing recreation sites along the Rogue River, from Hog Creek to Grave Creek, in light of the Rum Creek Fire.

"The BLM doesn't take river closures lightly and we tried to keep the river open as long as possible," said Bill Dean, Grants Pass Field Manager in a press release. "We apologize for the impacts to the rafting community and will re-open these recreation sites as soon as it is safe to do so."

For the most current evacuation information and resources, go to www.facebook.com/josephinecountyEM or Josephine County incident information, see rvem.org.

For information about the fire, see the Rum Creek Fire Facebook page at www.facebook.com/rumcreekfire2022 and the Inciweb page at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8348/

Reach reporter Kevin Opsahl at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @KevJourno.

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