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Oregon wildfires: Hot, dry weather increases activity for Taylor Creek, Klondike fires

Crews battling the Klondike Fire burning southwest of Grants Pass are bracing for a challenging weekend as the 62,000-acre blaze to continues to grow.

Hot, dry weather resulted in growth for both the Taylor Creek and Klondike Fire Friday night.

Crews battling the Klondike Fire burning southwest of Grants Pass are bracing for a challenging weekend as the 62,000-acre blaze to continues to grow.

Fire spokesman Sam Harrel said that they expect Saturday to be challenging due to warm temperatures, lowest relative humidity and gusty northeast winds.

The Klondike is the largest of the wildfires burning in Southern Oregon and demands the most firefighting attention.

It grew by a couple thousand acres Friday, coming in at 66,332 acres with containment remaining at 15 percent as of Saturday morning.

The southeast corner of the Klondike fire remains the top priority for crews Saturday, where the blaze crossed the Illinois River.

Credit: US Forest Service
This picture shows where the Klondike Fire has spread in relation to local landmarks (Photo: US Forest Service)

The western perimeter had little acreage growth overnight, but crews will continue to build fire lines along Flat Top Road to Chinaman Hat Road, according to a report.

There remain 1,600 fire teams working the Klondike and Taylor Creek Fires as of Friday. More firefighters were shuffled to work on the Klondike Fire as it outpaced other fires in the region.

Harrel said a surge of hot shot crews arrived mid-week to assist in firefighting efforts.

"These guys are trained and fit to work in this rugged terrain out here," he said.

Northeast winds of 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph from Friday are expected to continue Saturday.

"It's going to push and drive the fire across the slope, away from values at risk, but it has our attention," operations section chief Russ Long said Friday. "We have all our firefighters working hard on the containment lines and preparing to defend them."

According to a report, the western edge of the Klondike Fire bumped up against the Chetco Bar Fire scar, which will be used as a natural containment line.

"The nice thing about that is the Chetco fire burned up a lot those fuels out here so the fire's not going to get the chance to get into that area and move much," Harrel said.

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office announced a Level 1 "Be Ready" evacuation Thursday for all residences on the west side of U.S. Highway 199 between 8 Dollar Mountain Road and the Oregon/California border.

See this post for the most detailed information on evacuations.

Here's a map showing the most recent movement of the fires and evacuation areas.

Here's a roundup of all the other fires burning in the area.

Taylor Creek Fire

The Taylor Creek Fire brought the most closures and evacuations last week and hasn’t gone away by a long shot, but it hasn’t seen the same amount of growth as the Klondike.

The blaze is estimated to be 52,588 acres. Containment grew from 52 to 58 percent as of Saturday morning.

Growth of the fire continued Friday as the result of dry fuels and hot, dry weather. Relatively low humidity allowed the blaze to burn actively overnight.

Oregon wildfires: 'Most challenging day' ahead for crews battling Klondike Fire

Bear Camp and Peavine Roads remain closed to traffic due to firefighter activity. Officials said the ongoing risk of trees and other debris falling on roads continues to threaten traveler safety.

Fire officials said good news came in the form of lowered evacuation levels on the north edge of the Taylor Creek Friday.

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office lowered evacuation levels in the Galice area, allowing a handful of residents who had evacuated to return to their homes. Power was also restored to some areas.

Due to increased temperatures and lower fuel moistures, the risk of fire ignition and fire spread is magnified. Here are some simple tips to prevent a fire from starting.

Miles / Columbus / Snowshoe Fire complex

This collection of fires, formally known as the Sugar Pine and South Umpqua complexes, is located north of Medford near Prospect.

The complex reached 46,718 acres and was 35 percent contained as of Saturday.

The Miles Fire, the largest in the complex, has spread to 32,934 acres and is 35 percent contained.

Fire managers said that although suppression efforts are progressing, activity is active within the fire's perimeter.

"Without a break in the weather in the foreseeable future, firefighters continue to stay ahead of the fire front through methodical burnout operations, nursing it to established control lines," according to a report.

More: US vows to work more closely with states to fight wildfires

The Columbus Fire is at 9,814 acres and is 29 percent contained, the Snowshoe Fire is at 3,816 acres and is now 100 percent contained.

"It doesn't mean the fire's out," spokesman Pete Glover said Friday. "It just means our lines are secure."

A report states that control lines along the western and northern perimeters of the Columbus Fire are holding.

All Level 3 "Go" evacuations in all areas of the Miles Fire were reduced to a Level 2 "Be Set" by fire officials and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office Friday.

For updated evacuation levels due to this fire, see this map.

Natchez Fire

The Natchez Fire south of Cave Junction grew slightly more than 1,000 acres as of Saturday morning, making the blaze a total of 19,680 acres with containment holding steady at 57 percent.

Continued hot, dry weather is the result of a high-pressure system that is drifting over the blaze, which fire personnel anticipate will "keep a cap on the fire and continue to minimize fire behavior."

With low fire behavior Friday, crews completed low-intensity burning operations on the southeastern perimeter of the fire. Personnel continued to mop up and patrol the northern and eastern fire perimeter.

Officials said they plan to continue Friday's operations Saturday, with a priority on protecting structures, communities and other at-risk values near the eastern and southern parts of the fire.

Several areas surrounding the blaze are under evacuation warnings, and closures remain in effect on the Rogue River-Siskiyou and Klamath National Forests.

Due to the fire's southern growth, the emergency closure area surrounding the blaze was expanded. For a detailed description of the new closure area, click here.

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