Baker County, Oregon Joint Information Center - Daily Update, August 24, 2015

Baker County, Oregon
Joint Information Center

Cornet/Windy Ridge, Eagle Complex, and Eldorado Fires

Daily Update

August 24, 2015

Contact Information

Fire and Evacuation Information: 541-523-2905 (Monday through Friday)

                        www.facebook.com/pages/Baker-County-Consolidated-911-Dispatch

Eagle Complex Fire 541-406-0201

Eldorado and Cornet-Windy Ridge Fires 541-446-3521

Email: BakerCoJointInfo@gmail.com

http://bluemountainfireinfo.blogspot.com

Facebook:        https://www.facebook.com/CornetFire

https://www.facebook.com/ElDoradoFire2015 

https://www.facebook.com/EagleComplex2015

Inciweb:           http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4478/ (Cornet/Windy Ridge)

http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4502/ (El Dorado)

http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4481/ (Eagle Complex)

Incident Commanders:

Oregon Department of Forestry Team III-Link Smith (Eldorado and Cornet-Windy Ridge Fires)

Rocky Mountain Team Black-Shane Greer (Eagle Complex)

Fire Statistics
	Total Acres:	Percent Contained:	Cause:	Start Date:
Eagle Complex	8,129	5%	Lightning	August 10, 2015
Eldorado	20,601	70%	Lightning	August 14, 2015
Cornet/Windy Ridge	103,887	80%	Lightning	August 10, 2015
	Structures Lost:	Short Location:
Eagle Complex	1	20 Miles northwest of Richland, Oregon
Eldorado	1	5 Miles southeast of Unity, Oregon
Cornet/Windy Ridge	8	10 Miles East of Unity Oregon
	# Personnel:	Types of Resources:
Eagle Complex	326	CREWS: 11, ENGINES: 18, DOZERS: 3, TENDERS: 4, HELICOPTERS: shared with other incidents
Eldorado	315	CREWS: 1, ENGINES: 15, DOZERS: 1, WATER TENDERS: 2, HELICOPTERS: shared.
Cornet/Windy Ridge	20	CREWS: 0, ENGINES: 7, DOZERS: 3; TENDERS 2, HELICOPTERS:  shared.

Weather: Today’s forecast calls for more hot, dry and breezy weather.

Media Advisory: Media are requested to call the Joint Information Center number listed above.

Road Closures: None at this time. Highway 245 is open. Please check www.tripcheck .com for current road-closures.

Evacuation Levels: Eagle Fire still has evacuations in place. All evacuations have been lifted for Eldorado and Cornet-Windy Ridge Fires. General evacuation level information is available at: http://tinyurl.com/Evacuation-Level-Meaning. 

Shelters: The Red Cross remains available to open a shelter; provide medical attention; and assist affected Baker County citizens, if needed. For Red Cross assistance call 541-519-2360.

Oregon Health Authority – Smoke Information: The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued an air quality advisory for Baker and Malheur counties. This advisory will remain in effect until air quality conditions have significantly improved.  Air quality conditions outside of Baker City may vary. Residents can review the DEQ Air Quality Index website at http://www.deq.state.or.us/aqi/index.aspx for information about air quality and visibility. 

Weather conditions and smoke levels can vary dramatically during wildfires. Smoke might impact one part of a community but not another. This can make it difficult to provide any specific health advisories, especially as conditions change so quickly. For more air quality information look for the Daily NE Oregon and West Central Idaho Smoke Forecast  on http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com/,  and http://www.oregon.gov/deq/pages/index.aspx or http://tinyurl.com/OHA-Wildfire-Smoke

Recreation Areas: Regulated closures are in effect on State and private lands protected by Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) in northeast and central Oregon. Please check with your local Oregon Department of Forestry office for public use restrictions on lands protected by ODF. Visit the Blue Mountain Interagency Dispatch webpage at: www.bmidc.org or contact a local Oregon Department of Forestry office for more complete information.

National Guard Assistance: The National Guard continues to provide helicopter support to assist the area’s fire suppression efforts.

Reducing Wildfire Risk: Communities can reduce wildfire risk or adapt to wildfire by taking actions that help protect homes, neighborhoods, and communities from wildfires. To learn what communities are doing to adapt to wildfire, visit http://facnetwork.org or http://www.firewise.org/. 

Eagle Complex

Current Situation:  On Sunday, firefighters on the ground were aided by four Oregon Army National Guard helicopters assigned to the Eagle Complex. Air support provided about 30,000 gallons of retardant to assist with structure protection efforts and further secure the southern edge of the Eagle Complex. Firefighters increased structure protection efforts in East Eagle Creek by adding additional control features around the community. Protection efforts were also expanded on structures from Tamarack Campground north in the Boulder Creek area. Crews completed a burn out operation to eliminate unburned fuel between the edge of the fire and the road near the junction of Forest Service Roads 77 and 7745. Firefighters worked through the night to monitor and patrol the fire – taking action as needed to protect structures and keep the fire north of Eagle Creek.

Firefighters will continue structure protection efforts, mopping up along Forest Service 77 Road on the southern edge of the fire, and continue preparing Forest Service 77 Road south from the junction of Forest Service Roads 77 and 7745 to the intersection of Forest Service 7735 Road for the possibility of using it as a containment line.

There is a Red Flag Warning in effect for the fire through 9:00 p.m. on Monday for hot and windy conditions.

 
Area Fire Closures: 

To provide for the safety of Wallowa-Whitman National Forest visitors, an Area Fire Closure is in effect. The Emergency Closure and a map of the affected areas are available at www.fs.usda.gov/wallowa-whitman/.

 
Public Safety: 

The Baker County Sheriff's Office has issued a LEVEL 3 evacuation notice to include where the intersection of the 7700 road turns to the Northeast at the intersection of the 7700 and 7015 roads up the Long Creek drainage to the wilderness. The evacuation levels for the area south of the 7735 road, South of the junction of the 7735 and 7700 road to McBride Campground and over to Carson down to the forest boundary have been increased to a LEVEL 2 (Get Set). Evacuation levels for the Eagle Complex are available on the interactive incident map (http://arcg.is/1I5DaJw).

Eldorado and Cornet-Windy Ridge Fires

Current Situation: 

Oregon Department of Forestry’s Incident Management Team #3 is now managing both the Eldorado Fire and the Cornet-Windy Ridge Fire. Both fires have shown little to no growth over the past few days. Firefighters are now doing all they can to assure both stay that way by mopping up hot spots and rehabilitating damaged areas from fire suppression activities. The Eldorado Fire stands at 20,611 acres and is now 70 percent contained. The Cornet-Windy Ridge Fire is 103,887 acres and 80 percent contained.

While both fires are showing little signs of life, a Red Flag Weather Warning is in effect for the area calling for higher temperatures, low humidity and unstable air conditions. These conditions will not only stir up unburned islands within the confines of each fire’s perimeter, they will cause new fire ignitions to spread quickly. Fire managers across the state are asking the public to continue exercising caution when working or recreating outdoors. Many firefighters are in the process of moving onto other fires or heading home for a well-deserved break. 

Closures: No area fire closures are in place.

Public Safety: All evacuation notices were lifted at noon today, August 23, 2015. The public should be cautious when driving; crews and equipment are working near and along the roads, and smoke may hinder visibility. Highway 245 is open although caution should be used when traveling this route. Fire-aftermath sightseeing along this highway is strongly discouraged.

Additional Info: The fire is on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, private timberland protected by ODF, and rangelands under the protection of the Ironside Rangeland Protection Association.

Area Fire Closures: A forest closure order is in place for the area around the Cornet-Windy Ridge Fires. Please see the link to the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest Website http://www.fs.usda.gov/main/wallowa-whitman/home.