07/31/2002

By kgw.com and AP Staff

Firefighters cut trees and brush around threatened homes and stood ready to light backfires Wednesday to block the 30-mile-long eastern front of the Biscuit Complex wildfire as more of the 17,000 residents decided it was time to leave the smoke-filled Illinois Valley.

A helicopter drops water unto a burning wildfire on the Siskyou Forest north of Selma, Ore., near the California border. (AP Photo)

While it appeared that most residents have decided to stay for the time being, pickup trucks and trailers loaded with furniture, bicycles and photo albums continued to head to safety as smoke filled the valley and fire commanders put residents on notice to be ready to leave within 30 minutes of a notice to be broadcast on local radio.

The Josephine County sheriff's office said that as of Wednesday evening about 400 people had registered with the Red Cross as having left the valley.

Cliff Loncosky, left, and his wife, Rebecca, pack belongings into a pick-up as they assist his father prepare for a possible evacuation from his home along Highway 199, near Cave Junction. (AP Photo)

Outside Selma, retired high school principal Ron Brood watched with a mixture of hope and regret as firefighters cut a moo goo pine and juniper bushes in his backyard that could explode into flames if ignited.

"If it can help keep the fire from getting to my house, more power to them," said Brood, 66, who has lived in the Illinois Valley since 1968.

Along the ridgetops to the west, hotshot crews waited for favorable winds before touching off backfires to strengthen the 30-mile-long primary line of defense against the fire, and bulldozer crews carved a backup line in case the main one is breached.

"The way it's acting, we're not taking any chances," bulldozer boss Joe Feldhaus said of the fire.

"We have the lines in place and the people in place," said operations officer Bill Bowles. "It's just a matter of the weather coming together to make it all happen."

Red flag warnings were posted for strong winds out of the north, which pushed the 145,000-acre Florence Fire closer to the 35,000-acre Sour Biscuit Fire. The fires -- which make up the Biscuit Complex -- were last reported about three miles apart.

Firefighters need three days of winds out of the east to safely torch off the one- to two-mile strip of brush and timber standing between the bulldozer line and the fire. The defense line is about two miles from U.S. Highway 199, which runs down the middle of the valley.

Meanwhile, a separate fire camp and management team were being established 40 miles to the north in the community of Agness to cover the northern and western flanks of the fire.

Another 100 miles of line still must be built to corral the Biscuit Complex fires, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Mike Ferris.

Smoke from the Florence wildfire burning near Selma, Ore., raises into the sky over Grants Pass. (AP Photo)

"Twenty-five years ago, I had a home burn in the Los Angeles National Forest, and I'm not going to have that happen again," said Bob Bell, using a fire hose to douse the grass beside his house on the outskirts of Cave Junction. "I've got a pond in back that's seven feet deep, and I'm going to jump in it," if the fire comes.

Across the road, Jim Valentine put a sprinkler on the roof of his house while working to repair the track on a bulldozer he was hired to use to help fight the fire. He has sent his daughter off to care for his ailing mother, and planned to leave himself when the threat is greater.

"This fire can be a half mile away from here and torch this place off," he said. "If a piece of bark the size of a hamburger can fly through the air and land on the roof and lay there and heat up and eventually take off. It's pretty ugly. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy."

One primary escape route, U.S. Highway 199 south to the coast, remained closed by another fire in California; however, U.S. Highway 199 north to Grants Pass and three different back roads remained open, said Josephine County sheriff's Lt. Lee Harman.

No homes have been lost since Sunday, when three in the Oak Flat area deep in the Illinois River canyon were lost.

Cache Mtn. Fire Near Containment

Elsewhere in Oregon, the Cache Mountain Fire near Black Butte Ranch was 85 percent contained and holding at 4,200 acres burned. Firefighters expected to have it completely contained by Thursday night.

The 5,000 residents of the Black Butte Ranch who were evacuated over the weekend were allowed to return home as of Wednesday afternoon.

“We’re really excited about returning folks to their homes in the Black Butte Ranch subdivision,” said Incident Commander Bob Sandman.

The Cache Mountain fire burned two homes in the subdivision Sunday and at one point threatened to spread across the development. But in recent days, the containment lines were holding.

Most other wildfires in the state were generally contained.

Exceptions were the Timbered Rock Fire burning on 17,000 acres 20 miles north of Medford and the Tiller Complex near Canyonville.

Timbered Rock was listed as 20 percent contained Wednesday. So far 143 homes have been evacuated but none has been lost. More than 1,000 firefighters are assigned to tht blaze.

The Tiller Complex was burning Wednesday on more than 23,500 acres and was listed as 25 percent contained. Tribal ceremonial grounds and critical cultural resources are threatened.

Wildfires at a Glance

Major wildfires were burning on more than 350,000 acres in Oregon.

About 12,115 firefighters are working in the state. The Northwest Interagency Communication Center is tracking at least 14 major fires in Oregon. Top priorities for fire officials were the Florence fire, the Timbered Rock fire, the Cache Mountain fire and the Sour Biscuit fire.

LUCKY FIRE

Started: 7/29/02, 10 p.m. six miles south of Detroit.

Size:60 acres

Containment: 10 percent

Evacuations: None.

Damages: None yet. In heavy timber.

On scene: 120 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning

SKUNK FIRE:

Started: 7/24/2002, Klamath County, north of Sprague River.

Size: 2,544 acres

Evacuations: Moccasin Hill and Klamath Forest Estates subdivision orders have been lifted as of July 29, 2002.

Damage: one outbuilding destroyed.

Containment: 80 percent containment.

On scene: 441 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning strikes.

CACHE MOUNTAIN:

Started: 7/24/02, 15 miles northwest of Sisters, Oregon

Size: 3,700 acres.

Containment: 85 percent.

Evacuations: About 1300 homes evacuated. Evacuation order remains in place. Highway 20 reopened.

Damage: Two homes destroyed.

On scene: 459 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning.

SHELDON RIDGE:

Started: 7/24/02, 3 miles southwest of The Dalles.

Size: 12,761 acres

Containment: 80 percent

Evacuations: Voluntary evacuation cancelled.

Damage: Eight outbuildings destroyed, one home damaged.

On scene: 660 total personnel.

Cause: Lightning.

WINTER-TOOLBOX FIRES

Started: in Lake County 07/12/02 and merged 7/20/02.

Size: 86,794 (Toolbox) 35,525 (Winter)

Containment: 65 percent (Toolbox); 90 percent (Winter)

Evacuations: Voluntary evacuations of 85 homes.

Damage: None reported.

On scene: 2479 (both fires combined)

Cause: Lightning.

MALHEUR-FLAGTAIL COMPLEX

Started: 8-25 miles from Prairie City, 07/12/02.

Size: 24,200 acres.

Containment: 30 percent.

Evacuations: No mandatory evacuation, but 52 residences and 13 commercial properties and 196 outbuildings are threatened. A historic home, Austin House, is 4 miles from the fire.

Damage: None.

On scene: 1,752 firefighters

Cause: Lightning

TILLER COMPLEX

Started: Outside Tiller, east of Canyonville off Interstate 5, 07/12/02.

Size: 18,655 acres.

Containment: 25 percent

Evacuations: South Umpqua Road closed at milepost 6. Fifteen residence threatened. Tribal ceremonial grounds and critical cultural resources are threatened.

Damage: No listed damage.

On scene: 1,359 firefighters

Cause: Lightning.

NORTH UMPQUA COMPLEX

Started: 25 miles east of Glide, 07/12/02.

Size: 1,749 acres.

Containment: 80 percent.

Evacuations: 20 residences threatened, one business and 10 outbuildings. Historical resources, cultural sites threatened.

Damage: None.

On Scene: 610 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning.

MONUMENT FIRE

Started: 9 miles southwest of Unity, 07/12/02

Size: 24,435 acres

Containment: 80 percent.

Evacuations: None at this time.

Damage:None.

On Scene: 1,233 firefighters, military battalion from Topeka, Kansas in place.

Cause: Lightning.

747/MURRAY COMPLEX

Started: Northeast of Paulina in Black Canyon Wilderness, 07/13/22.

Size: 17,266 acres

Containment: 80 percent.

Evacuations: No evacuations; Four homes and eight outbuildings threatened.

Damage: Road closures.

On scene: 653 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning.

FLORENCE FIRE

Started: 26 miles west of Grant Pass, 07/13/02.

Size: 145,000 acres.

Containment: 5 percent.

Evacuations: The entire Illinois Valley on notice to evacuate.

Damage: 3 residences and 8 outbuildings.

On scene: 988 firefighters.

Cause: Lightning.

SOUR BISCUIT FIRE

Started: 17 miles southwest of Cave Junction

Size: 35,000 acres. (source: Florence fire camp)

Containment: zero percent containment

Evacuations: None yet.

Damage: no

On scene:373

Cause: lightning

TIMBERED ROCK FIRE

Started: Unknown. 20 miles north of Medford.

Size: 13,450 acres

Containment: 20 percent

Evacuations: Elk Creek Road is closed except to fire vehicles. Evacuation area for all addresses along Elk Creek Road, 143 homes, is still in effect. No homes were immediately threatened by yesterday's fire activity and no homes have been lost. July 30.

Damage: None

On Scene: 988 firefighters

Cause: lightning

Source: The Northwest Interagency Coordination Center

(Copyright 2002 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)