Archie Creek Fire Update

September 24, 2020
Unified Incident Commanders Mike Dueitt and Tim Keith
Email: 2020.archiecreek@firenet.gov Phone: 971-334-7674 Hours: 8am-8pm

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7176/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArchieCreekFireInfo/

Special Notes: Although Highway 138E is open, you should not stop, pull over on the shoulder or leave your
vehicle along the highway. Roadside hazards such as falling trees and debris flows remain, especially with the
recent rain. Drive with caution at a speed that is appropriate for road conditions to protect yourself, other
motorists and emergency and repair personnel.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s office announced yesterday that the following areas have been reduced from a
Level 2 "BE SET" evacuation notice down to a Level 1 "BE READY": Dry Creek, including Happy Creek
Lane, Felix Flat, Elk Ridge Drive and Illahee Road and Little River Road from Buckhorn Road to New Bridge
Road, including all side roads between these two points (Cavitt Creek Road). For more information on current
evacuation levels, see www.dcso.com/evacuations
Fire Update: The Archie Creek Fire has burned 131,598 acres and is 55 percent contained. There are currently
1,082 personnel assigned. The cause of the Archie Creek Fire is still under investigation.
Yesterday firelines withstood the test of gusty winds. The highest gust recorded was 48 mph near the west
flank of the fire. Helicopters dropped water on the southern flank of the fire near a 2017 burn scar to keep the
fire from spreading to burnable vegetation in the old scar. “We hit the jackpot on the fire in terms of rain,” said
incident meteorologist Brett Lutz. Although Roseburg saw only 0.2 inches of rain, weather stations around the
fire area reported 0.4 to 1.3 inches of rain.
Minimal fire behavior is expected today. Some line construction still needs to be competed in rugged terrain at
the southeast flank of the fire, but for the most part, firefighters are mopping up all around the fire. Mop up is a
progressive process. It starts immediately along containment lines and goes deeper and deeper into the fire
interior each day until firefighters are confident that fire will not cross the lines. Fire hose placed all around the
perimeter helps cool hot spots during mop up.
Specific areas of mop up include the Panther Creek (4714) Road area west of Highway 138, Zig Zag Creek
area, a half-acre fire outside the perimeter of the Archie Fire in the Pass Creek area, an area south of Trapper
Creek and around structures in Glide, Idleyld Park and Rock Creek. Although fire crews continue to reinforce
firelines by mopping up, stumps and other material inside the fire will continue to produce smoke.
Firefighters are protecting homes and other buildings in all areas of the fire, including along Little River Road
and they ae assessing structure protection for the Bar L subdivision. Other areas of special protection include
the Wolf Creek Job Corps, Susan Creek Bridge, communications equipment on Scott Mountain and the Big
Tree area. The Big Tree is still standing and the area around it is protected by a sprinkler system. Crews
continue to remove live and dead vegetation around the Job Corps to reduce fire risk.

North of Highway 138E, in the Steamboat area, firefighters and heavy equipment continue to work along
Canton Creek Road to Trapper Creek to remove hazard trees and burnable vegetation along contingency
firelines.
As containment increases, firefighters will backhaul equipment, grade roads and assess what actions they need
to take to repair damage from building firelines and suppressing the fire. This is to ensure fireline construction
and other suppression actions do not have long-lasting impacts to natural resources.
Personnel and Equipment: 23 Type 2 hand crews, 8 helicopters, 1 fixed wing air attack, 76 engines, 35
bulldozers, 45 water tenders, 8 masticators and 5 skidgeons.
Help for Fire Victims: Information on disaster aid can be found at https://wildfire.oregon.gov/ The following
agencies and organizations are helping those who were affected by this fire and are accepting donations.
 Glide Revitalization Committee located at Glide Middle School, 301 Glide Loop Drive.
https://gliderevitalization.com/
 Red Cross: also located at Glide Middle School
 Glide Helping Hands Wednesdays 10am-2pm, located behind Glide Seventh Day Adventist Church (1/2
mile east of Glide High School): 541-733-6860
 Glide Baptist Church: https://www.glidebaptist.org/
 Greater Douglas United Way: https://gduway.org/campaigns/fire-relief-fund/
 Roseburg Rotary: https://www.facebook.com/RoseburgRotary/ and
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=s-
xclick&hosted_button_id=3D2BEGT2AJBRS&source=url
 Douglas Timber Operators / Umpqua Fisheries Enhancement Derby:

 Saving Grace: www.savinggrace.info 541-672-3907
 Salvation Army: 541-672-6581
Evacuations, shelter areas: An interactive map of the current evacuation area can be found
at www.dcso.com/evacuations. For more evacuation information, visit the Douglas County Sheriff website
www.dcso.com/evacuations and Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/DouglasCoSO
The Douglas County Fairgrounds has full RV spaces, electric hookup spaces and dry camping available. They
also have stalls and arenas for livestock and farm animals. Contact Ciera Keith at (541) 440-4394 for more
information.
Air quality: See the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality at http://www.oregon.gov/deq
Closures:
 Roads – Highway 138E is open, but delays up to 45 minutes should be expected. See www.tripcheck.com
for updates on highway closures.
 Bureau of Land Management – All lands east of Interstate 5, within the Swiftwater Resource Area are
closed.
 Umpqua National Forest – Maps and closure orders can be found on Inciweb at:
https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7176/. Additional information on Forest Service closures are
available at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/umpqua/alerts-notices Managed lands east of Interstate 5,
within the Swiftwater Resource Area are closed.
 Temporary Flight Restriction: There is a temporary flight restriction for aircraft, including drones, in
effect for the Archie Creek Fire and it has been reduced from 10,000 feet above mean sea level to 8,000
feet. Non-fire aircraft may fly over the fire area from 8 pm to 9 am. Wildfires are a No Drone Zones. If you
fly, we can’t. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org/

Thielsen Fire Update Sept. 24 2020

Location	Diamond Lake Ranger District, 5 miles north of Crater Lake National Park and within 1 mile of Diamond Lake Resort
Size/ Containment	9,971 acres and 30% contained. Fire was discovered on Sept. 8 at 0830 PDT. Cause is unknown.
Evacuations (no change)	Evacuation level is at Level 2 “SET” for the Diamond Lake area. Authorized residents and permit holders are allowed to enter the area. Road guards are at checkpoints around Diamond Lake to restrict access to unauthorized users. Visit the Douglas County Sheriff’s website for the most current information.
Resources	Personnel: 493 Type 2 Crews: 7 Type 2IA Crews: 4 Helicopters: 3 Type 3 Engines: 1 Type 4 Engines: 4 Type 6 Engines: 11 Water Tenders: 13 Masticators: 1 Dozers: 8 Fixed-wing Aircraft: 1
Current Situation	Yesterday, crews continued to work around the fire area; however, some personnel had to disengage in areas where snags were present due to high winds. Resources continued to construct and secure firelines along the southern and northern edges of the fire. Firefighters have secured the Cinnamon Butte Tower and communications site using a sprinkler system and by removing vegetation to prevent fire spread. Today, personnel will work to hold and mop up along the western edge of the fire. Handcrews and engines will be critical to holding the fire along Hwy. 138 in the area adjacent to Diamond Lake to protect direct threats to structures. Resources will construct handline from Cinnamon Butte to Hwy. 138 and continue to identify containment opportunities along the northern edge of the fire. Crews will construct handline, cold trail and mop up along the fire edge and continue to identify contingency containment opportunities along the southeastern edge of the fire. Minimum Impact Suppression Tactics (MIST) are being implemented in the fire area.
Closures	Road Closures: Hwy. 138 is open with pilot cars escorting traffic from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. to mitigate risks to fire resources working along and adjacent to the roadway. For the latest road conditions, visit www.tripcheck.com. The route to Miller Lake via FS Road 9772 remains closed from the intersection with Hwy. 97 to the intersection with FS Road 110 due to firefighter traffic. Drivers are being directed to take FS Road 9774 to connect with FS Road 110 as an alternative route. Forest Closures: The Umpqua National Forest is currently at Industrial Fire Precaution Level III. No industrial operating waivers will be issued. The Fire Adjective Class is High. Temporary emergency closure orders remain in effect for all National Forest System lands, roads, and trails within the Cottage Grove Ranger District: ORDER NO. 06-15-01-20-423, Tiller Ranger District ORDER NO. 06-15-02-20-422, Diamond Lake Ranger District ORDER NO. 06-15-03-20-420 and North Umpqua Ranger District ORDER NO. 06-15-06-20-421. Flight restrictions: A temporary flight restriction remains in place from the surface up to and including 10,000 feet to provide a safe environment for fire-fighting aviation operations.
Air Quality	Air quality continues to improve. For more information visit airnow.gov
Weather and Fire Behavior	Wetting rain will bring much-needed moisture to the area this morning. By midday winds will increase again with gusts up to 20 mph.
InciWeb	https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7195/

Lionshead Fire Update Thursday, September 24, 2020

Rain & Wind Affect Firefighting Efforts

Special Notes: A virtual fire information public meeting was held on September 23, 2020. To view a recording of the meeting, go to https://www.facebook.com/LionsheadFire.

Schools have reopened. Please be aware of increased traffic.

Current Situation:

The wind picked up Wednesday afternoon, resulting in increased burning in green islands well within the fire’s perimeter. The fire gained some acreage, but containment remained at 15%. Rain fell on the fire overnight. This will reduce fire behavior and should allow crews to make even more progress. The rain was variable, but over an inch fell on some sections of the fire.

In the wake of most wildfires, there are dead trees (snags) as well as trees that are fire-weakened that tend to fall, sometimes with little warning. These trees create a hazard to firefighters as well as having the potential to block roadways needed for travel in and around the fire. Firefighters refer to these as hazard trees. When such trees are found to constitute a danger, they are cut down by crews of experienced fallers or removed with equipment.

The rainfall expected today will improve air quality. Rainfall may cause slippery roads and make travel in and around the fire difficult. Debris flows are possible, however, the amount of rain predicted is not expected to create widespread flooding.

Firefighting Efforts by Division: (Refer to the map for division breakdown.)

Very little movement has occurred on the north edge of the fire in Division A over the past few days. The contingency line north of the fire’s active edge is secure. This line should prevent spread of the fire if fire behavior picks up. Containment line is secure all the way south to Division R. Previous burnouts look secure. Progress was made in the Badger Butte area, although work continues to close a gap in constructed line. Interior islands burning out showed considerable smoke.

The east side of Division A is in patrol status with mop up operations still seeing a little heat. Crews were pulled out of some parts of Division A on Wednesday due to wind for crew safety.

In Division E, patrol and chipping operations continue.

Divisions G, I, K, and N have been quiet for several days and continue to be secure. Firefighters are monitoring and patrolling this area. Most of the road system has been prepped and is now being reinforced for indirect line.

On the southeast perimeter, working west from the Division N/R break (north of Jefferson Lake), the fireline has been secured west to the lava rock area. This area will be monitored by air operations and watched by lookouts. All line on the 12 Road is complete just short of the 20 Road. Firefighters still have work to do removing logs and slash.

Much of the fire perimeter in Division S has checked itself along the road system. There hasn’t been any significant fire movement or spread in this division for several days.

The fire in Division T has mostly checked on existing roads. Crew work is primarily patrol and cold trailing along the fire’s edge. Cold trailing is a method of controlling a partly dead fire edge by carefully inspecting and feeling with the hands to detect and extinguish any remaining heat. Firefighters are looking for and containing any spread across roadways.

The structure group continues their work in Detroit, Idanha, New Idanha, and Breitenbush securing line and mopping up.

Crews in Division W, Y and Z secured spot fires found near 46 Road. The 46 Road remains closed to the public due to the large amount of heavy equipment required for this effort. This road may remain closed until snags and other hazards are cleared and the road is deemed safe for public travel.

The north contingency group is reinforcing indirect line in Divisions A and Z along the road system. The north contingency group is working in close coordination with Riverside Fire managers to identify opportunities to connect existing roads that both fires could use in the event these indirect lines are needed. The line is being secured with heavy equipment and hand crews removing fuels. The south contingency group is working along County Road 12 to County Road 20, improving fuel breaks along the road.

Air operations completed some bucket work yesterday, but building winds made this effort difficult by afternoon.

Weather & Fuel Conditions: Today, expect rainy conditions with gusty winds over much of the fire. Southwest winds will increase to 12-18 mph with gusts of 30-35 mph. Rainfall accumulations will be higher west of the crest and lower inland.

Closures and Evacuations: Evacuation Notices remain in place for the Lionshead Fire. Level 3 “Go!” evacuation notices are still in place for the communities of Detroit, Idanha, New Idanha, and Breitenbush. A map of evacuations in Marion County is available here. There are no longer any evacuation notices for the Sidwalter/Miller flats area.

Roads and trails near the fire remain closed for public safety. The 12 Road will remain closed to the public for the near future. This includes roads and trails on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Spring lands adjacent to the fire and a 40-mile section of the Pacific Crest Trail between Santiam Pass and Olallie Lake. The Willamette National Forest, Bureau of Land Management, and State lands around the fire remain closed to the public. Go to InciWeb.gov for more information about closures in the area. Deschutes NF Alerts Willamette NF Alerts Mt. Hood NF Alerts.

Temporary Flight Restrictions: A Temporary Flight Restriction is in place over the Lionshead Fire and surrounding fires. Wildfires are a No Drone Zone. If you fly, we can’t. Whenever a drone is spotted near the fire all aircraft are grounded until we can be sure the drone is clear of the area. For more information, visit knowbeforeyoufly.org.

Lionshead Fire Statistics:

Size: 203,566 acres

Containment: 15%

Total Personnel: 1,370

Location: 14 miles west of Warm Springs

Reported: 8/16/20, approximately 8:44 p.m.

Cause: Lightning

For More Information:

Information Office: 971-277-5075, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Media Inquiries: 541-904-0542

Email: 2020.lionshead@firenet.gov

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7049/