Sunday, June 21, 2015

06/21/2015 Buckskin Fire AM Update

Buckskin Fire – Cave Junction, Oregon
Fire Location: Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest Incident Commander: Doug Johnson
Information Center – 541-597-2223
Inciweb :
http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4286/ Email: Buckskinfire2015@gmail.com
Oregon Interagency Incident Management Team 3 would like to invite the public to the Incident Command Post (Fire Camp) for a tour and information on the incident command system. The guided tour will occur Sunday, June 21, 2015 at 2:00 pm at Mallard Loop Campground, Lake Selmac. Please wear sturdy shoes, a hat and sunscreen. Tours will last approximately 1.5 hrs. Children are welcome!!

Firefighters continue to make excellent progress on the now 4,797-acre Buckskin Fire southwest of Cave Junction by completing burnout on the east to southeast perimeters yesterday. Crews reached the Biscuit Hill area using drip torches and helicopters with heli-torches to apply fire and burn fuels between the main fire and containment lines. Other flanks of the fire showed little to no activity. Current growth of the fire is predominately a result of the burnout operations within containment lines. Overall containment is now 25 percent.

Forecasted strong west winds may test firelines today as burnout operations proceed along the southern perimeter. Crews plan to secure containment lines to the main body of the fire near Baldface Creek along the mid-southern edge. Mop-up of burning debris within 300 feet of the east to southeast containment lines will continue. Mop-up depth will vary due to the danger to firefighters from falling snags inside containment lines. Mop-up is used to create the cold, blackened (reduced fuels) buffer needed to contain the fire. Two 10-person fire crews will continue to monitor fire behavior and weather on the west flank.
Excess resources no longer needed for containment of the fire are being released for reassignment or to return home.

Forest Road 4402, the main access road into the east side of the fire, has received a high volume of traffic from suppression activities. The road has been graded over the last several days to smooth and improve its surfacing. Dust abatement on the road was initiated yesterday and will continue today. This measure helps to stabilize the road surfacing and to reduce the demand on local water sources being used to reduce dust and create a safer driving environment for firefighters.
While Baldface Creek continues to flow at an acceptable level based on monitoring by the fisheries biologist, water levels remain a concern due to the prolonged drought. As a result, two heliwells (self-contained tanks holding approximately 10,000 to 15,000 gallons of water) will be used on the fire and located on private lands near the Illinois Valley Airport. The treated bleach-water will become the main source for helicopters to use for fire suppression work. The treated water will mitigate the spread of Port Orford Cedar root rot disease. Fire suppression guidelines from the National Marine Fisheries Service are being followed to avoid impacts to critical Coho salmon and other species' habitat.

Resource advisors are working closely with Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest specialists to develop fire suppression repair guidelines. These guidelines will address suppression impacts to the sensitive landscape and other resources. The plan will provide for the rehabilitation of all dozer lines, trails, containment lines, spike camps and other fire suppression related activities. Primary fire lines will remain in place to assure containment until the Forest deems it safe to rehabilitate.
Communities in the Illinois and Rogue Valleys may continue to be impacted by smoke. Those sensitive to smoke should be aware and take appropriate actions. Detailed air quality information can be found on Oregon Smoke at http://OregonSmoke.BlogSpot.com.

A Fire Area Closure Order remains in place closing forest land around the wildfire area to provide for public health and safety. For more information, please see the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, Buckskin Fire Inciweb, or Buckskin Fire Facebook web pages.

Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR): A TFR remains in place over the Buckskin Fire. Please check the NOTAMs for current information.
Start Date - June 11, 2015Location - 10 miles southwest of Cave Junction on the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. Cause - LightningResources - Crews – 11; Dozers – 4; Engines – 6; Water Tenders – 13; Helicopters – 11 Total Personnel - 590

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