Bootleg Fire now over 400,000 acres, 40% contained

LAKEVIEW, Ore. – Growth of the Bootleg Fire burning in Klamath and Lake Counties was minimal compared to previous days as crews work to reinforce containment lines.

The wildfire was first reported on July 6 about 15 miles northwest of Beatty. The weekend after it started, the Bootleg Fire grew rapidly, sometimes doubling in size over the span of 24 hours.

As of the morning of July 22, the lightning-caused fire was estimated to be 399,359 acres in size. On July 23, the fire was estimated to be just over 1,000 acres larger at 400,389 acres. It was 40% contained.

Over 2,300 personnel are assigned to the fire as crews work to reinforce control lines.

“Our firefighters have put in an incredible amount of hard work on this fire,” said Joe Hessel, Incident Commander for the Oregon Department of Forestry Incident Management Team. “The fire continues to throw challenges at us, and we are going to continue to stay vigilant, work hard, and adapt.”

Overnight, there was increased fire activity on the east side of the fire. This prompted new Level 3 evacuation warnings in the area near Summer Lake.

Klamath and Lake Counties have altered the evacuation zones. An interactive map of evacuation levels is available at tinyurl.com/bootlegevac

For the latest updates, visit https://www.facebook.com/BootlegFireInfo