9/3/2017 Eagle Creek Fire Update

Eagle Creek Fire Information
Email: eaglecreekfire2017@gmail.com
Phone: 541-392-1632

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5584/
 

A new fire Saturday in the Eagle Creek Trail area in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area trapped more than 150 hikers and led to evacuations in Cascade Locks. The Eagle Creek Fire was reported Saturday afternoon at approximately 4 p.m. The fire grew to about 3,000 acres overnight and is now approximately 1/2 mile from Cascade Locks, Oregon.

Public safety is the number one priority in the Eagle Creek Fire. For their safety, 153 hikers had to shelter in place last night near Tunnel Falls as the fire had cut off their return access. A National Guard helicopter dropped supplies to the hikers yesterday. Local search and rescue crews will be assisting in leading the hikers out today.

The Hood River County Sheriff put evacuations into place last night in the community of Cascade Locks. A Level 3 (Go) evacuation notice was given to residences south of Interstate 84 and all residences north of Interstate 84 in the Cascade Locks area are under Level 2 (Be Set) evacuation notice. A Red Cross Shelter has been set up at the Skamania County Fairgrounds, immediately across the Columbia River in Stevenson, Washington.

The Eagle Creek Fire is a human-caused fire but specifics remain under investigation by the Oregon State Police. With the current hot weather, vegetation is extremely dry and will ignite quickly. The U.S. Forest Service would like to remind the public to use caution, and recognize that any spark can cause a wildfire. Please know before you go what fire restrictions are in place, and plan on using an alternate fuel source for cooking, such as a backpacking stove or propane burner.

For updated information on the Eagle Creek Fire, visit the incident’s Inciweb page (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5584/#), on the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/crgnsa/), or follow on Twitter https://twitter.com/CRGNSA.