Communities need to change the way they prepare for wildfires, especially massive ones that rip through thousands of acres, according to U.S. Forest Service research ecologist Paul Hessburg.
The Douglas Forest Protective Association and other regional fire crews responded to a fire in the Bear Springs area, approximately 7 miles west of Glendale, which ignited early Thursday morning.
The Umpqua North Complex and Horse Prairie fires ripped through Douglas County last year burning nearly 60,000 acres total, forcing residents to evacuate and roads to close.
Although smoke has cleared from the Miles Fire, fire officials remind residents that there is still active fire in the interior of the blaze and to stay outside of the fire area.
The Miles and Columbus fires continue to slowly burn toward each other and fire officials expect they will join in the next week or so.
The Douglas Forest Protective Association is urging hunters to learn the fire restrictions currently in place, before heading out into the woods for the opening of bow-hunting season, because of high fire danger.
The Miles and Columbus fires have reached more than 50 percent containment on 49,418 acres. Firefighters and resources are continuing to be reassigned to other locations.
The amount of containment went up while acreage and personnel went down on the Miles Fire on Wednesday.
Firefighters plan to continue to secure the eastern portion of the 35,455-acre Miles Fire Wednesday, removing green fuels and patrolling for spot fires.
Changing winds and burnouts on the eastern portion of the Miles Fire are expected to create more smoke in Southern Oregon Tuesday, according to fire officials.
TILLER — While many firefighters are digging hand lines, dragging hose to mop up hot spots and patrolling the more-than-46,000-acre Miles Fire, one small engine crew is working to protect the world’s tallest sugar pine.
The dense forest along Jackson Creek Road outside of Tiller looked misty Wednesday morning. Up above, smoke clouded the sky and the trees became obscured, reduced to outlines in the gray distance.
As fire activity calmed on the southern portion of the Miles Fire Monday, firefighters are hoping to complete a control line around the entire southern portion of the blaze Tuesday and work on “herding” both the Miles and Columbus fires to the east.
More than 1,000 structures and 400 homes have been checked or outfitted to better withstand the extreme wildfire conditions in Southern Oregon thanks to 41 different fire agencies, according to the Oregon Office of the State Fire Marshal.
For firefighters battling the Miles Fire on the border of Douglas and Jackson County, the main concern on Friday will be the wind.
More than 1,800 personnel are helping battle the more than 40,000 acre Miles Fire, which includes a series of fires burning on the border of Douglas and Jackson County.
More residents in the Elk Creek and Lost Creek Lake areas were told to evacuate Tuesday as the Miles Fire continued to grow.
Smoky conditions over the last couple days have allowed firefighters to make progress on control lines and spot fires in the South Umpqua Complex, which has grown to nearly 29,000 acres and is 18 percent contained.
