Salem Fire

Crews fight a house fire on Lansing Ave. in Salem

Crews around Portland and the Willamette Valley battled the fire threat as record-breaking temperatures soared above 100 degrees Tuesday.

Brush fire threat

Fire scorched a grass-covered island between I-84 north and I-205 south early Tuesday afternoon. It snarled traffic and left firefighters with a healthy sweat.

Slideshow: Grass fire sparked in Portland

"It’s extremely hot,” firefighter Luke Stowell said. “Full turn out gear would be another story of hot, take it to another level. But still, this is hot."

Around Portland’s Forest Park, crews covered Saltzman Road top to bottom by ATV and a brush truck. Crews started early this season and will cover about eight miles a day, four days a week through fire season.

Fire officials wanted to remind people there was no smoking, fireworks or campfires allowed in the park.

Crews regularily start patrols around the first of August, but because temperatures are heating up so quickly in Portland, this year they're getting a jump start

More: Triple digits scorch Oregon

Wildfires threaten homes in SE Oregon

Several agencies were called to a fast-moving grass fire south of Jefferson on Shady Bend Rd. It was apparently started hay baling equipment. Crews said wind and hot conditions quickly spread the blaze and firefighters had to truck in water to fight 25-foot high flames. It was under control in about an hour and crews were able to keep it from spreading to adjacent fields.

House fires a challenge in heat

In Salem, crews had their hands full with three house fires in just over one hour.

Crews were unable to save the building at Lansing Avenue NE. One fire fighter was overcome by the heat and was treated by paramedics on the scene.

Also: Crews prepare for early fires

Less than 10 minutes crews were called to Evergreen Avenue NE for a single-story duplex fire. Neighbors at the duplex were getting help from the Red Cross due to smoke damaged apartments, but no injuries were reported. The cause was determined to be an electrical malfunction.

Then just over an hour after the second fire, another house fire was reported at 2115 Lansing Street NE. The fire burned the wood-shingled roof and did about $10,000 in damage. No one was hurt.

In Battle Ground, crews fought a two-alarm house fire where a woman, her 22-year-old year old daughter, and three dogs escaped. Clark County crews were investigating the cause.