Elbow Creek Fire Update July 27, 2021 6 p.m.

 Wallowa, OR – The Elbow Creek Fire has burned 22,790 acres and is 38 percent contained. More water tenders are being ordered to assist with mop-up operations. These will arrive through tonight and tomorrow.

The Elbow Creek Drainage continues to be the focus on the fire. Burnout operations on the east side of the creek, that occurred today, are being monitored to make sure lines are secure. Further west, crews are still finding and catching small spot fires.

On the north side of the river, steady development was made on contingency roads, specifically in the northwest corner. Crews will continue to work on the 62 and 6220 roads tomorrow.

A hot spot was discovered and caught on the east branch of Sickfoot Creek on the south side of the Grande Ronde River. Crews also continue to monitor and mop-up the Duckworth Drainage.

In the southwest corner of the fire, hose has been laid around majority of the fire perimeter and crews will work to strengthen fire line and mop up.

Wildland fire investigators remain on the river until tomorrow when they will complete their investigation.

The weather forecast remains relatively unchanged from today moving into tomorrow. Relative humidity will increase to 20-30 percent, with greater recovery overnight. Temperatures will begin to warm again, but conditions will not be as dry. Incident Meteorologist Brent Bower says that there is a good chance for substantial rainfall hitting the area this weekend.

With Chief Joseph Days taking place in Joseph now through Sunday, fire officials are encouraging all visitors to “know before you go”.  While the fire area will not affect the festivities, visitors should be aware of road and forest closures. Also, make sure to be cautious when driving through these small communities.

Be sure to stay up-to-date on Wallowa County Sheriff’s evacuation levels, listed here: www.facebook.com/Wallowa-County-Sheriffs-Office-147212815486187.

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Lick Creek and Green Ridge Fire Updates – Tuesday, July 27, 2021 – 9:30 a.m

 California Team 12 assumed command of the Lick Creek and Green Ridge fires Monday, July 26, 2021 at 6:00pm.

Lick Creek Fire: The Lick Creek Fire is 90% contained. Smoke will continue to be visible as unburned pockets of vegetation inside the fire area are consumed. Crews will continue to monitor and patrol the perimeter until full containment is achieved.

Green Ridge Fire Current Situation: The burning operations from the 30 Road northeast to Panjab Trailhead have been completed. Future burning operations will continue from Panjab Trailhead to the road junction near Panjab Campground. From there it will continue north and eastward along the 4022 Road connecting to the west side of the Lick Creek Fire near Clearwater Lookout area.

A wildland fire module will work along the southern portion of the fire. Crews will be finishing structure assessment and protection measures to the south near Godman Guard Station and to the north near Tucannon. Structure assessment and protection will also take place on the east side of the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness in the Grouse flats area. These crews will also be available for initial attack of any new fires in the local area. A combination of hand and aerial ignition, using helicopters and UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System), may be used to accomplish the burnout operations along prepared roads to the south and west of the fire as conditions allow.

Additional resources are on order and will be used to replace crews that are timing out as well as provide additional support.

Weather and Smoke Information: Partly cloudy with scattered thunderstorms through the day. The combination of clouds and smoke will bring the potential for a few degrees of cooling. Otherwise it will be another warm day across the fire. Smoke Information is available on the Washington Smoke Blog at: https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/

Evacuations: The remaining Level 1 evacuation area for Garfield County will be expanded from Mountain Road going west to Columbia County line and north from Umatilla National Forest Boundary to Linville Ridge Road to Blind Grade extending to the Columbia County line. If you have any questions, please contact the Garfield County Emergency Management Director, Tina Meier, or Sheriff Drew Hyer at (509)843-3494.

Closures: All Forest Service lands, roads, and trails within the Umatilla National Forest are closed. For more information visit the Umatilla National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd931174.pdf.

ADDITIONAL FIRE INFORMATION:

Lick Creek Fire Information: 509-780-6238

Lick Creek Fire InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7615/

Lick Creek Facebook: Lick Creek Fire

Green Ridge Fire Information: 509-542-7964

Green Ridge Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/

Green Ridge Facebook: Green Ridge Fire

Lick Creek Fire Quick Facts

Start Date: July 7, 2021                     Resources: Cause: Lightning                                2 Crews Containment: 90%                            9 Engines Approx. Size: 80,392 acres               2 Dozers Total Personnel: 203                        7 Water Tenders Location: Approximately 20 miles SW of Asotin, WA

 

Green Ridge Fire Quick Facts

Start Date: July 7, 2021                     Resources: Cause: Lightning                                9 Crews Approx. Size: 6,799 acres                 10 Engines Containment: 15%                            4 Dozers Total Personnel: 333                        14 Water Tenders 6 Masticators Location: Green Ridge area, 30 miles east of Walla Walla

Elbow Creek Fire Update For July 27, 2021 9 a.m.

 CURRENT FIRE SIZE AS OF 7/25/21 IR FLIGHT                                    22,790 ACRES 

CURRENT FIRE CONTAINMENT                                                                        38% 

Last night was relatively calm for operations as crews continued to take the heat out of the the Elbow Creek Fire. Fire tactics on the north side of the Grande Ronde River included mopping up spot fires east of Elbow Creek and monitoring the burnout in the eastern portion of the drainage. In the northeast corner, eight minor spot fires were caught and contained. On the south side, crews continued to mop-up and work on strengthening lines around Sickfoot Creek.  

For today, a contingency group will continue to prepare roads on the north side of the river. On the south side, crews will secure problem areas and make the edge more secure around Duckworth Creek. Mop-up efforts deeper into the fire perimeter will continue on both sides of the river.  

The northeast and southwest sides of the fire have been caught, remain stable, and are being mopped up deeper into the fire perimeter, as much as 200 feet in most areas.  

Hot and dry weather conditions remain, but today we will see some slight changes in the weather patterns. A southerly flow will be bringing in monsoon moisture and more clouds. There is a slight chance for showers and thunderstorms.  

The Umatilla National Forest remains closed as well as several roads within the fire area. 

BMIDC Morning Briefing, Tuesday, July 27, 2021

 

BMIDC MORNING BRIEFING
Tuesday, July 27, 2021
BMIDC WEBSITE
7/26 (NEW) INITIAL ATTACK	Fires	Acres
Umatilla National Forest	0	0
Wallowa Whitman National Forest	0	0
Vale/PRD District BLM Baker Area	0	0
NEO Oregon Department of Forestry	0	0
WA DNR Snake River Unit	0	0
BIA Umatilla Agency	0	0
Total	0	0
INCIDENT SUMMARY
Fire Activity 7/26 No New Activity Previously Reported Incidents OR-UMF-000745, Elbow Creek. WWRD. Mud Spring Area. 31 Miles SE of Walla Walla, WA. 22,790 Acres. Unknown Cause. 38% Contained. Resources Responded 7/15. OR-UMF-000659, Green Ridge.  PRD.  Green Ridge Area.  30 Miles East of Walla Walla, WA.  6,799 Acres.  Lighting Caused.  Resources Responded 7/7.  15% Contained. Grass and Shrubs.  Green Ridge and Turkey Tail are being managed as one, but 2 separate incidents that will likely grow into each other. OR-UMF-000658, Lick Creek.  PRD.  Dry Lick Creek Area.  15 Miles SE of Pomeroy, WA.  80,392 Acres.  Lightning Caused.  Resources Responded 7/7.  90% Contained. Grass, Timber and Snags. Dry Gulch has been absorbed by Lick Creek. Example: OR-974S-001114, Buck. WAL ODF.  T4N R44E Sec 11 NWNW. Courtney Creek Area. 29 Miles North of Enterprise, OR.  .1 Acres.  Unknown Cause.  ODF Stat Fire.  Resources Responded 9/29.  Contained 9/29.  Grass.

Elbow Creek Fire Evening Update July 26, 2021 6 p.m.

 Wallowa, OR – The Elbow Creek Fire is approximately 22,790 acres and 32 percent contained. More firefighting personnel and equipment arrived today, filling all fire line resource needs.

The Elbow Creek area continues to be the focus for firefighters. Crews continue to suppress spot fires in the area and tie a short section of containment line together. Tonight, the priority is finishing the last bit of burnouts.

Due to the incredible work of our firefighters, fire progression has been stopped in the Sickfoot Creek drainage. The focus here will now transition to mop-up operations. To the east of Sickfoot, in the southern corner of the fire perimeter, a couple of minor spot fires were caught today. These have been taken care of but reminds crews to stay diligent, even in times of stable fire conditions.

The conditions on the east side of the fire have not changed. Tomorrow’s operations will include deeper interior mop-up as well as strengthening of the fire line.

The 6213 Road will be opened briefly tomorrow to allow wildland fire investigators access to complete their investigation of the fire.

Weather patterns will remain consistent with what they have been, although temperatures will lower slightly. Winds will remain relatively light, and humidity will increase a little. The forecast does predict a very slight chance of rain and thunderstorms during tomorrow’s operational period.

Evacuation levels within Wallowa County remain unchanged for now. It has been discovered that two single residences were destroyed during the course of the fire, as well as four minor structures. Additional information on evacuation levels is available on the Wallowa County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page (www.facebook.com/Wallowa-County-Sheriffs-Office-147212815486187).

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Lick Creek/Green Ridge Fire Update for July 26, 2021 9 a.m.

 Lick Creek Fire: The Lick Creek Fire is 90% contained. Smoke will continue to be visible as unburned pockets of vegetation inside the fire area are consumed. A small spot fire approximately 100 feet from the southern perimeter was contained by crews that are monitoring and patrolling the fire. 

Green Ridge Fire Current Situation: Preparation of roads on the north, west and south of the fire for burnout operations is ongoing. Handline from the 030 Road northwest to Panjab and north from Panjab to Meadow Creek has been completed. From Meadow Creek to the northwest, handline and hose lays are in place connecting to the 4022 road where mechanical line preparation has tied into the southern side of the Lick Creek Fire.  

Today’s Activities for Green Ridge Fire: A wildland fire module will continue to work along the northern portion of the fire inside the Wilderness boundary. Crews will be finishing structure assessment and protection measures to the south near Godman Guard Station and to the north near Tucannon. Structure assessment and protection will also take place on the east side of the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness in the Grouse flats area. These crews will also be available for Initial attack of any new fires in the local area. A combination of hand and aerial ignition may be used to accomplish the burnout operations along prepared roads to the south and west of the fire as conditions allow.  

Pacific Northwest Team 3 will be shadowed by California Team 12 today in preparation of transferring command of the fire at 6:00pm tonight. After transition occurs, the Command Post will be established in Dayton, Washington. 

“On behalf of our entire team I’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the communities of Asotin, Columbia and Garfield counties for their cooperation and outstanding support while we were here,” said Randy Johnson, Incident Commander for Pacific Northwest Team 3.  

Weather and Smoke Information: Mostly sunny in the morning, increasing clouds through the day. The combination of clouds and smoke will bring the potential for a few degrees of cooling, otherwise it will be another warm day across the fire. Smoke Information is available on the Washington Smoke Blog at: https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/ 

Evacuations: Evacuation zones, and fire perimeter maps are posted on InciWeb at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7615 (Lick Creek) and https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/ (Green Ridge). 

Closures: All Forest Service lands, roads, and trails within the Umatilla National Forest are closed. For more information visit the Umatilla National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd931174.pdf. 

 

Lick Creek Fire
InciWeb Page 

ADDITIONAL FIRE INFORMATION: 

Lick Creek Fire Information: 509-780-6238 

Lick Creek Fire InciWeb:  inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7615/ 

Lick Creek Facebook: Lick Creek Fire 

Green Ridge Fire Information: 509-542-7964 

Green Ridge Fire InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7628/ 

Green Ridge Facebook: Green Ridge Fire 

Green Ridge Fire
InciWeb Page 

 

Lick Creek and Green Ridge Fires

Fire Information

(509) 780-6238 (Lick Creek)

(509) 542-7964 (Green Ridge)

Elbow Creek Fire Morning Update for July 26, 2021 9 a.m.

 CURRENT FIRE SIZE AS OF 7/25/21 IR FLIGHT           22,681 ACRES 

CURRENT FIRE CONTAINMENT                                                         32% 

Operations Section Chief praised crews at this morning’s Elbow Creek Fire briefing for the excellent work that has been done to date. Much of the fire is lined and crews are transitioning to heavy mop-up in most areas.  

LAST NIGHT AND TODAY:  

Last night, crews successfully wrapped up a burnout operation and finished tying together containment lines east of the 6212 Road in the Elbow Creek area. The area still showed increased fire activity with the fire spotting over containment lines throughout the late afternoon. However, crews were able to quickly respond and control all spot fires outside containment lines. Today, crews will prioritize this area and continue to focus efforts here. 

Weather patterns consistent with the past few days have been forecasted for today’s operational period. This is good news – minimal winds, and slightly cooler temperatures reducing potential for extreme fire activity. Relative humidity will remain quite low though, around 13 to 24 percent. 

Early in the evening yesterday, a firefighter did experience a burn injury to their hand and lower arm. The individual was transported to a La Grande hospital for evaluation and treatment and later released. To mitigate some of these potential risks, safety officers have asked all fire line personnel to implement 5 at 2, where they will take a tactical pause for 5 minutes at 2:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. to check in with their situational awareness. 

We will be hosting another virtual community update tonight at 7 p.m. A link will be provided as soon as possible.  

Big Hole Spike camp will be fully moved into Elgin by this evening. 

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