Updates and new evacuation notices for Oregon Gulch Fire

Ashland, Ore. — An ominous forecast leaves firefighters battling the Oregon Gulch Fire watching the skies.

Fire officials said firefighters were able to use yesterday’s cooler weather to their advantage, building a fire line around most of the fire. But the Oregon Gulch Fire has more than tripled in size, burning 36,568 acres southeast of Ashland. The fire is 20% contained.

More than 1,200 firefighters are working to fight the fire. Sunday’s cool weather gave them the upper hand, but now a red flag warning threatens their progress.

That progress has prompted some changes to the evacuations in affect. People who live in the 6,000 block of Copco Road south to the Oregon border have gone from a level three to a level two evacuation. That means residents need to be prepared at a moments notice.

People who live between the 11,000 to 12,000 block of Highway 66 in Oregon are still under a level one evacuation, meaning “be ready.” This does not impact people in Keno.

The Klamath River Canyon from the John C. Boyle Dam to the California border will be downgraded to a level two evacuation.

In Siskiyou County mandatory evacuations are in place one mile east of the town of Copco to Beaver Creek, but only on the north side of Copco Lake.

An evacuation center is still open at the Jackson Street Elementary School in Yreka.

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