Oregon is Burning, and the Fires Are Zero Percent Contained

Damage from this week's wildfires across Oregon could be the largest loss of life and property ever seen from fires.

So far, the many fires—some which have combined to become one mega-fire—are 0% contained.

The cities of Detroit, Vida, Talent and Phoenix have been "substantially destroyed."

Officials have high hopes for tomorrow, when the winds that have pummeled the western slope of the Cascades from Clackamas County all the way to the Oregon-California border are expected to change direction and slow down.

And for those who want to help, the best way to do so right now is to donate to the Red Cross, which is helping the many evacuees—some who have been rescued from dire conditions, like wading in rivers until they could be found.

Those are some of the biggest takeaways from a press conference Wednesday afternoon, hosted by Gov. Kate Brown and fire and National Guard officials in the state.


Brown described the circumstances around the fires, some that started Monday, as "unprecedented," saying all of Oregon is now facing a massive, statewide fire emergency. This morning, Brown invoked an emergency conflagration act for the entire state—something that has never been done before in the history of the state, she said.

While officials would not confirm the number of estimated deaths or the extent of property damage, Brown said, "Expect to see a great deal of loss in both structures and human lives."

Brown said an estimated 300,000 acres were burning in Oregon Wednesday afternoon—equivalent to more than 500 square miles. A combination of strong winds that blew in Monday, along with dry air and dry brush, have contributed to a "perfect storm," for the worst fire conditions in three decades, Brown said.

As of today, crews' biggest priority was finding and rescuing anyone who may still be in the area and need assistance. Yesterday, crews rescued dozens of people from evacuation areas east of Salem, but they hope to move Thursday into attempting to contain the fires.

The governor said that Wednesday morning, she directed the Office of Emergency Management to declare a federal emergency declaration—which would help the state cover the costs of supplying power, search and rescue, assistance with mortuary services and more. Oregon's entire congressional delegation—including Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR2) and Sen Wyden (D-OR) and Sen Merkley (D-OR)—in Washington, D.C. issued a press release this afternoon, saying they'd asked the president to offer expedited approval of the governor's disaster relief requests.


Eastern Oregon is the least-affected part of the state, said Doug Grafe, 
On the western slope of the Cascades, strong winds have been traveling down the canyons and driving all the fires into the valley bottoms. Earlier today, officials announced that the Lionshead Fire on Mt. Jefferson had merged with the Beachie Creek Fire and the Santiam Fires on the western slope, creating one massive fire.


Crews were "cutting into roads to see what is left in the (Santiam) Valley and how they can take fire action," Grafe said.

Just north of that massive fire, another blaze was pressing against the southern edge of Clackamas County, prompting the evacuation of the town of Estacada Wednesday afternoon. Officials expect that fire to merge with the other massive blaze. The Lionshead Fire was listed at over 105,340 acres Wednesday morning.

On the McKenzie Highway, Grafe said the Holiday Farm Fire is burning over 100,000 acres, where the entire valley has been evacuated, and officials expect to report massive amounts of damage as the days go on.

Further south, the fire burning near Roseburg, is clocked in at another 100,000 acres, Grafe said, with another fire near Medford erupting in the past 24 hours, burning about 15,000 acres as of Wednesday afternoon. 

The Red Cross Cascades Region is leading the effort to care for more than 100 evacuees who left the Blue River / Santiam Pass area to escape the Holiday Farm Fire. They were directed to go to the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center, the region’s temporary emergency shelter.

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Weather subsiding

Strong winds began to subside Wednesday, offering some relief for crews.

"That's the best news I can give you today," said Grafe from the Dept. of Forestry. "Tomorrow, we shift from life safety and point protection to re-establishing fire lines."

Grafe said on Thursday, the current weather pattern will break down mid-day and shift to a westerly flow and a marine air influence—which could slow the spread of the fires, but also, could push smoky air into Central Oregon. As of Wednesday, Bend's Air Quality Index was listed as moderate; cities including Eugene and Salem had air quality indexes in the 400+ range, considered hazardous.

Helping the fire evacuees

Central Oregon has thus far been relatively free of smoke and fire—though the Deschutes County Fairgrounds are listed as one of the evacuation centers for people who fled the fires.


People can donate and help the evacuees directly at the website for the Red Cross Cascades Region.

Officials also recommend evacuees use the Red Cross' "Safe and Well" website allows people to register themselves as safe so that family and friends can know they are out of harm's way.

During this unprecedented fire event for Oregon, officials also reminded people to only call 911 if there is a true emergency. Many people are calling into 911 to report smoke—which is jamming up the 911 system.

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Preparing for possible evacuation

With zero containment and winds shifting, officials at Gov. Brown's Wednesday press conference reminded people to take steps to prepare for possible evacuation, and to monitor the alerts from their county sheriff's departments.