8/12/2015 Collier Butte Fire AM Update

Collier Butte Fire – Gold Beach, Oregon

Fire Location: Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest

Incident Commander: Doug Johnson

Information Center – 541-247-4447

Inciweb: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4461

Email: Collierbuttefire@gmail.com

Facebook:  U.S. Forest Service-Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest

A community meeting to provide information about the Collier Butte Fire will be held in Brookings Thursday, 6 pm, August 13, 2015 at the Brookings-Harbor High School gymnasium.

Current Situation:

The Collier Butte Fire is 4,366 acres and 10 percent contained. The wildfire is burning in the northwest portion of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness and remote Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest System lands on the Gold Beach Ranger District.

Firefighters completed a containment line around the fire’s west flank by improving existing roads for an indirect line and using crews to build sections of direct line along the fire’s edge.  Crews will continue burnout operations intended to strengthen these lines by removing vegetation between the main body of the fire and the completed lines in preparation of warmer and dryer weather forecasted for the weekend.

Now that primary lines are in place on the western flank, crews and heavy equipment will begin working on alternate or contingency lines as a backup plan in this full suppression firefighting effort.  Chippers will be used to reduce fuels from chainsaw work along the roads used for containment lines.  Hotshot crews will continue building line in the southern area of the fire along and within the wilderness boundary.  Fire managers and crew leads are scouting the east and northeast flank for opportunities to prevent the fire from spreading to the east and crossing the Illinois River.

Helicopters will continue to support ground personnel by dropping water, transporting firefighters and hauling supplies.  Road graders are improving the surface of the upper section of Hunter Creek Road to provide for safer travel of firefighting vehicles.

Resource advisors continuously provide fire suppression measures to protect wilderness values, coho salmon, northern spotted owl and marbled murrelet habitats.

Closures:

Businesses along the south coast and Rogue River remain open.  Residents and visitors to Gold Beach, Agness and nearby communities are encouraged to drive carefully as firefighter traffic in the area has increased.  The upper section of Hunter Creek Road is closed to the public. Although the area is currently closed to the public, the Curry County Fairgrounds in Gold Beach will host the FairAugust 27-30.

For information on closures on the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, please see the Facebook page listed above.

Total Personnel - 616