Western Wildfires Update: Dozens of Homes Evacuated in Eastern Oregon

Associated Press
Published: August 13,2015

Residents of a rural area in eastern Oregon were forced to evacuate as two growing wildfires threatened dozens of homes south of Baker City.
Residents of 57 homes were told to leave Wednesday afternoon as the fires moved too close to the dwellings, officials at the Baker County sheriff's office and the Bureau of Land Management said.
Fire officials say the Windy River Fire was moving quickly to the northwest because of high winds. The fire burning in steep rocky terrain had grown to about 20 square miles by Wednesday night, but no structural damage has been reported so far.
(MORE: Why You Need a Severe Weather Plan for Outdoor Events)
"Fuels are very dry," she said. "They're in tough terrain with dry fuels and tough weather conditions, so all those things are lending themselves to the fire behavior that we've been experiencing and are expecting to experience."
Between that fire and another nearby blaze, 57 homes were under immediate evacuation orders, 47 were told to be ready to go at a moment's notice, and 41 are in areas that could become threatened, said Stefanie Kirby with Baker County Emergency Management.
Meanwhile, officials said U.S. Highway 26 through Warm Springs has reopened to traffic after having been closed Wednesday because of fire. Sparks from an RV's trailer that lost a wheel ignited over a half-dozen fires along the highway on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, KTVZ reported.
A double-wide home was destroyed, and evacuation orders were issued for several areas, said Clay Penhollow, spokesman for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
Here's a rundown of several large fires currently burning across the West.

California

A wildfire raging in Lake County, California, spread to neighboring Napa County Wednesday evening, Cal Fire reported.
At least 150 residents were pushed from their homes in the Hidden Valley area of Lake County earlier this week, according to SFGate.com. Many of those who were forced out by the advancing Jerusalem fire were also evacuated a week ago when the Rocky fire threatened their properties.
SFGate.com also said cooler weather has been helping crews battle the fires, but unpredictable winds have added a challenge to the firefight. The blazes are being pushed away from populated areas, the report added, but the infernos are moving into areas with bad access because of steep terrain.
According to Cal Fire, the Jerusalem fire has burned at least 23,500 acres and is 33 percent contained. Fire crews expect to have it fully contained by Monday. The Rocky fire has burned nearly 70,000 acres and is 95 percent contained.
No homes have been destroyed by the Jerusalem fire, and no injuries have been reported. The Rocky fire, however, burned 43 homes and 53 outbuildings. The causes of both fires remain under investigation.

Idaho-Oregon 

A blaze in southwestern Idaho and eastern Oregon fanned by shifting winds quickly grew to 200,000 acres, causing about 50 homes to be under an evacuation notice and burning key sage grouse habitat.
The fire blew across U.S. Highway 95 and moved a mile and a half in 8 minutes, said fire spokeswoman Carrie Bilbao of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Some closures along that roadway remain in effect.
With no sign of the fire dying down, Owyhee County Sheriff officials sent an evacuation order. As of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, roughly 30 homes had been evacuated, with that number expected to rise later in the day.
There were no reports of injuries, and just one structure has been lost in the sparsely populated area. No cause has been determined for the fire that's 11 percent contained.
About 40 square miles of the fire is in Oregon.
Authorities are expected to decide this fall whether sage grouse need federal protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Habitat loss is a key consideration.
Elsewhere in Idaho, lighting strikes in forests have started numerous fires. Most have been quickly contained.

Montana

High temperatures and low humidity caused the rapid growth of a new wildfire in a remote part of Glacier National Park.
Park officials say the blaze burned nearly 15,000 acres and was threatening the Upper Nyack cabin, a historic patrol cabin. Some trails and campsites were closed.