7/20/2014 4:00 pm Shaniko Butte Update

Oregon Interagency Incident Management Team #1 Ross Williams, Incident Commander  Shaniko Butte Afternoon Update July 20, 2014, 4 p.m.

Firefighters were not able to complete their planned burnout operation today because the relative humidity was too high and horses had grazed the grass too short. The grass was cropped low and would not carry fire because it was just a little too damp, so the firefighters finally had to stop trying to ignite it. Crews used the extra time to further improve the line in preparation for later ignition, and also to more thoroughly patrol the river area and extinguish any hot spots that were discovered. ##

Fire at a Glance Size: 42,000 acres Containment: 50% Location:  15 miles north of the town of Warm Springs, Oregon Cause:  Started by lightning on Sunday, July 13, 2014 Assigned personnel:  622 Aircraft: 1 Heavy-lift KMAX helicopter 1 Medium-lift helicopter 1 Light-lift helicopter Road Closures:            S-300/Highway 3 Junction            Red Lake Cemetery Road/ Highway 3 Junction River Closures:          Deschutes River from Trout Creek to Long Bend reopens at 6:00 AM Sunday, July 20 Notifications: Level and Area 1 All residences in the vicinity of Road S-300 and in the Kaskela area 2 All residences in the vicinity of Dant, OR 3 none Fire Information Number: 541-553-8190 Fire Information E-Mail: Shaniko.Butte@gmail.com