07/23/2023 Golden Fire Update

 

Golden Fire morning update for Sunday, July 23

July 23, 2023

Bonanza, Ore. – The Golden Fire continues to burn on Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) protected land, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lakeview District, and threatens Fremont-Winema National Forest lands approximately 11 miles north of Bonanza.

The fire is estimated to be approximately 2,000 acres with no containment. It was reported Saturday afternoon around 1:02 p.m. The fire cause is still under investigation.

Firefighters worked overnight on structure protection and constructing dozer line, handline, and contingency lines. Today the focus will be continued structure protection and work towards containment. Oregon State Fire Marshal sent two task forces through immediate response Saturday afternoon to add capacity protecting structures. Additionally, a conflagration was declared by Governor Kotek allowing OSFM to send additional task forces and an incident management team Saturday evening.

The Golden Fire is under unified command with local fire managers as well as the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Blue Team. An ODF Incident Management Team is expected to take command of the Golden Fire today at 1800.

Multiple structures remain threatened. Residents in the area should monitor their current evacuation status as this incident progresses. Highway 140E and Bly Mountain Cutoff are open with limited visibility. For

firefighter and public safety use caution if traveling in the area. There will be increased fire traffic around the Bonanza area.

The following is updated evacuation information, at the request of the Golden Fire Incident Commander, issued by Klamath County Emergency Management:

• Level 3 (GO NOW)
  • East of Highway 140E, north of Keno Springs Lane, and south of Polar Bear Lane.

For the latest evacuation information call the Klamath County hotline 541-205-9730. To sign up for Klamath County alerts, visit http://alerts.klamathcounty.org

American Red Cross along with Klamath County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) has set up shelter for evacuees at Bonanza High School. 31601 Mission Street, Bonanza, Oregon 97623.

There is a red flag warning issued for Klamath County for today through Monday for strong gusty winds and low relative humidity. The public is urged to use extreme caution with anything that can spark a wildfire. Any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly.

Contact Jennifer Case, 541-891-8534