Paradise, Hagen, Ninemile and Horse Ridge Fire Information - July 24, 2026

Paradise, Hagen, Ninemile and Horse Ridge Fire Information

Fire Information Phone: 541-970-7128 (8 am – 8 pm; voice only; texts will not be received)

Email: 2026.paradise@firenet.gov

Inciweb: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/

AirNow: https://fire.airnow.gov

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61592064000400

July 24, 2026

Active Fire Spread Prompts Additional Evacuation Advisories

Update: Additional firefighters and equipment continue to join the firefighting operations based in Walla Walla and Athena. The Incident Management Team is working in close coordination with Umatilla and Walla Walla County Sheriff’s offices, City of Walla Walla, state agencies, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation to protect values at risk. The Oregon State Fire Marshal has mobilized an incident management team and five structural task forces to this fire and is in unified command with Northwest Team 7.

These values include human safety, structures and communities, protection of municipal water supply, railroad corridors, private timber and range lands, and recreation opportunities. Because the Paradise Fire is entirely within the municipal watershed for the City of Walla Walla, these fires have become a top national priority for critically important firefighting resources like aircraft, crews and equipment.

For all fires, the objective is full extinguishment as efficiently and safely as possible. Firefighters are using tactics and strategies that provide the highest likelihood of success while mitigating risks to responders. This means a combination of direct fire line construction at the fires’ edge where possible. The teams are building control lines indirectly where the lines can be defended and successfully contain the fire.

The Incident Management Team will host a community meeting in Athena at 6 pm Friday evening. The meeting will also be live streamed at https://sites.resi.io/ess-paradisemtg and will be recorded and posted to the Facebook page listed above.

 The Paradise Fire (707 acres) about 10 miles southeast of Walla Walla showed moderate growth yesterday. Teams have identified good defensible indirect line locations and line construction is underway, using helicopter water drops to keep the fire in check.

The Hagen Fire (15,799 acres) about 9 miles southwest of Tollgate, Ore. burned actively yesterday. Firefighters successfully contained the fire south of Bingham Road, as the fire continued to back slowly to the road. Firefighters successfully protected structures along the road, and worked to locate fire line opportunities to contain the fire where it crossed Stumbough Ridge on the west side of the fire. The fire primarily grew to the east and has moved east across the 32 road and into the North Fork Umatilla Wilderness.

The Horse Ridge Fire (793 acres) about 5 miles northeast of Meacham, Ore. grew only slightly. Firefighters successfully conducted burnout operations to strengthen the containment lines, and are working to reinforce fire lines and mop-up along the fire’s edge.

The Ninemile Fire (100 acres) about 4 miles southwest of Tollgate within the North Fork Umatilla Wilderness, increased in yesterday’s dry and windy weather. Because this fire is directly in the probable path of the Hagen Fire, it is expected that the two fires will merge.

Evacuation Levels: The Umatilla County Sheriff reminds the public that due to the remote nature of these affected areas, residents must remain extremely vigilant and proactively monitor surrounding fire activity. Fire conditions can change rapidly.

Emergency Advisory: Effective immediately, evacuation levels have been elevated in areas of Umatilla County, Union County and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. See the advisories at  https://www.umatillacounty.net/departments/sheriffs-office/emergency-management/emergency-advisories. Follow the Sheriff’s Office on Facebook for evacuation updates: https://www.facebook.com/UmatillaCountySheriff.

 Fire and Fuels Advisory: The Northwest Coordination Center’s Predictive Services has issued an advisory https://gacc.nifc.gov/nwcc/content/pdfs/Fuels_and_Fire_Behavior_Advisory_PNW_20260714.pdf for most of Oregon and Washington that warns of dryer than normal fuel conditions due to record low snowpacks that will contribute to more active fire behavior and longer burning periods than is normal for this time of year.

Weather and Fire Behavior: An on-shore flow will bring breezy west to northwest winds today with gusts 15-20 mph on ridgetops. Warm, dry and unstable air over the fire and slightly higher humidity will support moderate fire spread, with steady backing fire in heavy fuels and the potential for short uphill runs and isolated torching.

Smoke Outlook: For current smoke reports visit https://fire.airnow.gov

Fire Restrictions: The Umatilla National Forest has issued public use restrictions https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/umatilla/alerts/phase-c-public-use-restrictions for smoking, off-road travel, and chainsaw use across the entire national forest.

Umatilla National Forest Closures: Forest officials have issued the following Forest Closure Order,  ttps://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/nfs/files/r06/umatilla/publication/alerts/06-14-06-26-08_OrderUpdated.pdf for public safety and to facilitate firefighting operations. Areas included in the closure include Corporation Guard Station and Trailhead, North Fork Umatilla Trailhead, Umatilla Fork Day-Use Area and Campground, Buck Creek Cabin, and Buck Creek Trailhead.

 Air Space Restrictions: Temporary Flight Restrictions are in place over the wildfires. If you fly, we can’t. Every time a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of this area. http://knowbeforeyoufly.org