8/16/2014 AM Middle Fork Ranger District Fire Updated

     Middle Fork Ranger District Fire Information Update

Deception Creek Complex• Staley Complex• Middle Fork District Initial Attack

Willamette National Forest

                August 16, 2014 10:00 am

Crews continue to make good progress on firefighting efforts across the Middle Fork Ranger District.   Warm and dry conditions yesterday assisted crews in locating "sleepers", fires started by lightning strikes that started on Sunday that were dampened by wet weather earlier in the week.   Additional warming is expected today and more sleepers may be found. 

Deception Creek Complex

•      Crews continue to focus on three priority fires, using helicopter bucket drops since conditions are not safe for firefighters due to steep rugged terrain on these fires. 

•       An infrared flight that detects hotspots found heat only in the three priority fires.

•      There are currently 13 fires; 9 staffed, 3 unstaffed and 1 unable to locate.

•      There is no imminent threat from those fires near the Deception Creek Mobile Park or the communities of Oakridge and Westfir.

Crews	Engines	Tenders	Dozers	Total personnel
3	9	1	1	233

Staley Complex

•      There was minimal fire activity on the Staley and Davey Complex yesterday; containment for Staley- 35%, Davey-25%.

•    19 fires, one new yesterday, 6 unable to locate, 4 are contained, 5 are uncontained and 4 are controlled.

•    Staley Fire – 205 acres; Davey Fire – 28 acres; there was no measurable growth yesterday, but with additional warming, fire growth on these two fires may be possible.

•     Resources are expected to make progress on the Pool Creek fire near the South Fork Groundhog Creek, which is estimated at 26 acres.

•     

Crews	Engines	Tenders	Dozers	Total personnel
10	26	6	3	525

Middle Fork Ranger District Initial Attack

•        Two new sleepers were identified yesterday.  A rappel crew engaged one of the new starts located in the Waldo Lake Wilderness.  The second fire, located south of Gold Lake, was worked on by an engine crew.

•     Crews continued constructing indirect line and "building a box" on a 22 acre fire burning near Spirit Lake, located two miles west of the boundary of the Waldo Lake Wilderness.

•     Work continues on containing newly discovered lightning fires in the Falls Creek area.

•        29 fires, 22 staffed, 8 secured and in patrol status and 4 reported that could not be located. Fires range in size from a single tree to 22 acres.

Crews	Engines	Tenders	Dozers	Total personnel
4	8	1	1	108

For dditional Fire Information, call 541-782-5359, or visit: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4041/

Email us at middleforkfires@gmail.com; for Closure Information visit the Willamette National Forest webpage at:  www.fs.usda.gov/willamette  Follow the Middle Fork fires on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WillametteNF