Prescribed burns scheduled for Fremont-Winema National Forest

U.S. Forest Service – Fremont-Winema National Forest: May 2019

LAKEVIEW, Ore. — Firefighters will be conducting prescribed burns on the Fremont-Winema National Forest beginning Saturday.

The US Forest Service says recent wet weather appears to have provided a possible window for burning this weekend into next week.

Beginning Saturday, crews will be working on the Lakeview Ranger District. The goal is to treat up to 600 acres near Forest Road 3940 and Secret Valley. Crews could be burning in the area through Wednesday depending on wind and smoke. The agency says smoke will be visible for approximately 5 days and is expected to travel to the south.

On Monday, crews hope to tackle another 500 acres on the Chemult Ranger District. That burn will be south of Highway 138 between mile posts 95 and 92 around 5 miles west of the Diamond Lake Junction. People nearby will see smoke, and it may be visible up to a week after the burn. Forest service official say the smoke is not expected to impact any nearby communities.

“Prescribed fires are an important tool used by wildland fire managers to reduce hazardous fuels in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) and from the forest as part of forest restoration efforts,” the US Forest Service says, “Reducing these fuels reduces the risk of devastating wildfires, as well as assisting with fire suppression efforts during the wildland fire season by moderating fire behavior. These activities also improve wildlife habitat and are part of restoring a healthy, fire-resilient forest.”