09/05/2015 Grizzly Bear Complex fire Update

Grizzly Bear Complex Fire
Daily Update 8 a.m.

Rain and snow at high elevations make mop-up easy today:exposing the heavy fuels that are still burning and letting “Mother Nature do the rest”

     Elgin, Ore. – Firefighters are meeting their objectives for fire line construction and mop-up along the north, east and south perimeters of the 75,530-acre Grizzly Bear Complex Fire.  The containment fire line outside the west boundary of the Wilderness along the 64 Road is expected to be completed in the next 3 to 5 days as brushing continues to protect the Mill Creek watershed.

Direct fire suppression tactics – helicopter water drops and preparing a half-mile of fire line construction – will be completed today along the 40 Road to Saddle Butte and Wilderness boundary today north of Grouse Flat.    

Fire hose, pumps and other equipment is being back-hauled today from most divisions as rain and snow have subdued fire behavior. An inch of snow fell last night above 6,000-feet elevation and between a third- and half-inch of rain has fallen over the Complex.  Today, cold west winds at
10 miles per hour will decrease wind chill temperatures to 25 to 35 degrees. More rain is expected today. 

Firefighters will be working in wet, cold, foggy conditions today, and mop-up will be easy.  According to the incident fire behavior analyst, mop-up tactics will rely on exposing large burning ground fuels and “allowing Mother Nature to do the rest.”

Keeping firefighters dry, slick roads, and falling snags are safety priorities of fire officials today.  According to Brian Gales, incident commander for Washington Interagency Incident Management Team #4, the ultimate success of this suppression effort will be getting firefighters home to family and friends.  Safety remains his top priority for all fire personnel.

Today, a Type III team led by Kim Soper will shadow Gale’s team and  assume command of the fire tomorrow at 6 a.m. The Oregon National Guard has met objectives and the 305 members will demobilize and depart from the incident tomorrow from Elgin and Troy, Ore.Evacuations levels will be lifted at 12 noon today if all sheriffs agree. Roads into the Complex remain close. A closure description and map of closed roads is available at all Umatilla National Forest offices as well as on the Umatilla National Forest website: www.fs.usda.gov/umatilla/ .