ODF report, Aug. 3, 9:03 p.m. – JACKSON & JOSEPHINE COUNTIES, Ore. (August 3, 2021) – Several new fires were detected Tuesday across the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) Southwest Oregon District, including incidents outside the district in Douglas County that ODF is currently assisting on. Three fires on the Grants Pass unit were discovered, as well as three on the Medford; that brings the total number of fires since lightning storms began on Thursday to 66. There are 43 fires on the Medford unit side, referred to as the Applegate Complex. On the Grants Pass unit, the remaining 23 fires make up the Apple Foots Complex. Of the 66 fires total, 35 were or currently are burning on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land; ODF Southwest Oregon District provides fire protection to BLM land in Jackson and Josephine counties. The remaining 16 are on private, 10 on industry, 2 on U.S. Forest Service Umpqua National Forest land, and 3 on U.S. Forest Service Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest land. Two of the BLM fires listed above are in the Douglas Forest Protective Association (DFPA) district in Douglas County. ODF Southwest is assisting with DPFA and USFS Umpqua National Forest on several fires in the Railroad Gap area, ranging from 5 to 80 acres; firefighters are actively engaged on these incidents. Information on these specific fires can be found on https://www.facebook.com/skylineridgecomplex/. On the ODF Southwest Oregon District, the top priority fires are: The Round Top Fire, located 10 miles northwest of Shady Cove. It is currently 23 acres, and now 100% lined, 0% contained but 100% plumbed, meaning they have hose secured around the fire and will have water easily accessible. The Buck Rock Fire, located 5 miles north of Trail. It’s currently 17 acres, 100% lined and 10% contained. Perimeter lines were strengthened Tuesday, after fire crossed over in a few areas overnight. Hazard trees in the area were removed to increase firefighter safety on the line. Overnight, firefighters will continue mop-up efforts. A test of the Josephine County Emergency Management Nixle Notification System to Ring Doorbell users caused concern late Tuesday afternoon; there are currently no evacuation orders in effect in Jackson or Josephine counties. Evacuations are determined by Jackson and Josephine County Emergency Management and Sheriff’s Offices. To sign up for alerts in either county, visit http://www.rvem.org/. Smoke from wildfires burning in Northern California remains in the air over Jackson and Josephine Counties. Information on general smoke reports can be found online at https://fire.airnow.gov/.
Additional information about fire season is also available online on our website, www.swofire.com, our Facebook page, @ODFSouthwest and our Twitter account, @swofire.
