7/18/2014 Shaniko Butte Upate

Oregon Interagency Incident

Management Team #1

Ross Williams, Incident Commander

Shaniko Butte Daily Update

July 18, 2014

As the Shaniko Butte Fire pushed against the Deschutes River on Thursday, officials closed the River from Trout Creek to Long Bend, a total of 31 river miles. Rafters

are still able to put in above Trout Creek or below Big

Bend.

The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company has shut down freight hauling on its Oregon Trunk line alongside the Deschutes River, with the exception of a few late-night trains. Burlington Northern has aided the firefighters with its “fire train”, a short train comprised of tanker cars filled with water and equipped with water cannons to wet the ground on both sides of the tracks. Also, Burlington Northern has agreed to be available to help move firefighting resources along the railway if needed for more effective access to the fire area.

The Oregon National Guard has been activated to provide two Chinook helicopters and two Blackhawk helicopters to fly in support of the firefighting effort. The aircraft are expected to arrive on Saturday and will fly out of the Madras airport.

The Shaniko Butte Fire was very active on Thursday, burning down to the river at Dant. One uninhabited historical mining outbuilding was lost. No other structures burned. Firefighters remained in and near

Dant through the night and into Friday as they worked to save homes and other structures along the river.

Firefighters are wary of the possibility of spots landing east of the Deschutes River. “The River seems like a formidable barrier to the fire,” said Incident Commander Shawn Sheldon, “but to the sparks flying in 20 mph winds, the river is no barrier at all.” Sheldon went on to say that the firefighters were doing their best to watch

for and suppress any spots that start burning across the river.

Firefighters credited the pre-clearing of brush from around the homes at Dant for helping to save them from burning. The pre-clearing was especially helpful because the Incident Management Team is utilizing scarce resources to protect structures and focus on public

safety.

Fire at a Glance

Size: 25,000 acres

Containment: 10%

Location:  15 miles north of the town of Warm Springs, Oregon

Cause:  Started by lightning on Sunday, July 13, 2014

Assigned personnel:  453

Aircraft:

1 Heavy-lift KMAX helicopter

1 Medium-lift helicopter

Road Closures:

·    S-300/Highway 3 Junction

·      Red Lake Cemetery Road/ Highway 3 Junction

Notifications: Level and Area

1	Four homes in the vicinity of Dant, OR
2	All residences in the vicinity of Road S-300
3	none

Fire Information Number:

541-553-8190

Fire Information E-Mail: Shaniko.Butte@gmail.com

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