Southern Oregon — The fire east of I-5 has traveled into Jackson County, but Oregon Department of Forestry says it’s still very far from Ashland.
Fire crews have been constructing a fire line in Southern Oregon to prevent it from going further, but that could change depending on the weather.
The northern-most part of the fire that’s in Oregon now is where we’re seeing more fire activity,” Gabe Lauderdale with Cal Fire said.
About a mile north of the Oregon-California border, the Klamathon Fire is continuing to make its mark in the Soda Mountain Wilderness.
“It’s hotter than it was last night, the relative humidity is coming down, and we’re seeing increased winds,” Lauderdale said.
A majority of the fire has been in Northern California, with only 12 to 14 acres burning in Oregon, but there’s a potential for that to change as the winds pick up Monday afternoon.
“We’re going to have a southwest wind push in this direction in the afternoon, and that’s what’s really going to be the additional challenge,” Melissa Cano with Oregon Department of Forestry said.
According to fire meteorologists ,the winds could push the flames into an area that has no recorded history of burning in the past.
“This area of Southern Oregon and Jackson County doesn’t have recent fire history that we know of, so there’s a lot of timber, there’s a lot of leaf litter on the ground… That if the fire becomes established in that area we could start to see fire growth again,” Lauderdale said.
However, fire crews have adjusted their tactics in anticipation of the fire spreading.
“Our Oregon Department of Forestry firefighters locally alongside Cal Fire have been in here constructing a fire line for days. It’s just going to have a little bit of a test this afternoon when that wind pushes that direction,” Cano said.
The land is rugged and steep, and sparsely populated, but firefighters will not quit until the Klamathon Fire is put to a stop.
“We’ve been attacking it since the beginning, and we’re going to continue doing a strong initial attack like we always do… to make sure it doesn’t threaten any of our communities,” Cano said.
Anyone who wants to learn more about preparing for a wildfire can go to readyforwildfire.org
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