Fire danger still 'high' in Lake, Klamath counties

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Fall officially begins Saturday, September 22nd, but fire season is still in effect in southern Oregon and northern California.

“Wake up, there’s some dew,” pointed out Randall Baley of the Oregon Department of Forestry. “But by mid-day, all that’s gone. High temperatures, we’re coming up into the 70’s still – we’re getting afternoon winds, and we’re still in fire season.”

The biggest fire in Klamath and Lake counties this year has been the Watson Creek fire, which burned more than 90 square miles near Paisley.

“If I was to compare last year’s numbers to this year, we are down as far as the number of fires,” added Baley. “Because we just haven’t had the lightning events. But our human-caused fires were about 70% of our total fires for the Klamath / Lake District.”

Some firefighters have headed back to school for the fall term, but many will be on duty until fire season ends.

“We’ll be at it until we get a season-ending event,” noted Randall Baley. “Which may not be until mid-October.”

While some restrictions have been eased, fire officials are still urging hunters and campers to use extreme caution with campfires.