8/22/2020 White River Fire Update

Yesterday, a cold front came through the White River Fire area and brought stronger west winds in the afternoon. This, along with lower humidity, lead to an increase in fire behavior including interior torching which led to spot fires across Forest Road 48. The road is being used a containment line. Dozers and helicopters were available to contain the spot fires.

Firefighters also worked to contain slow fire movement along the east side of the fire using low intensity fire to remove fuels between the road and the main fire.

The White River Fire is now at 1335 acres. The increase in acreage is due partially to better mapping and burnout operations to secure lines.
Today work along Forest Road 48 continues and includes removing unburned fuels south of Forest Road 48.

Crews will continue to reinforce lines to limit spread. Firefighters are relying heavily on aircraft to support firefighting in steep areas inaccessible to hand crews. Masticators, large machines that remove fuels, are also in use.

Today’s temperatures will be in the from 80s, relative humidity 19-24%, and winds 5-10 mph.

Closures:
For information on expanded road closures, trail closures, campground closures and day-use sites, please check the White River Fire on Inciweb for up-to-date closure information. https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/7013/53534/

Evacuations:
The Wasco County Sheriff has posted a Level 1 Evacuation notice for Sportsman Park and the Rock Creek area. https://www.facebook.com/WascoCountySheriff/posts/1837027263105452

For information on what the 1-2-3 evacuation notice levels mean go to: https://www.oregon.gov/osp/Docs/Evacuation-Levels.pdf

To sign up for Wasco County's Citizen Alert System go to: https://member.everbridge.net/453003085612392/login