JACKSON & JOSEPHINE COUNTIES, Ore. (Aug. 20, 2022) – Firefighters across Jackson and Josephine Counties continue to make steady progress on the Westside and Lightning Gulch Complexes. Crews completed fire line on several fires and are continuing mop-up operations across numerous incidents. In all, more than 50 reported lightning-caused fires from both complexes have burned a little over 300 acres.
Firefighters in Jackson County were able to meet their goal today, lining all fires within the Westside Complex. While crews have finished mopping up about half of the fires in the complex, mop-up operations are just getting underway on the Ladybug (87 acres), Keeler (60 acres) and Tallowbox (26 acres) fires. With containment lines completed, these numbers are expected to be their final sizes.
The Rum Creek Fire, located just north of Galice in Josephine County, is the lone fire within the Lightning Gulch Complex without established containment lines. The fire is estimated to be about 100 acres in size. Pacific Northwest Incident Management Team 13, led by Incident Commander Brian Gales, has arrived, and will take command of Rum Creek and the Hog Creek Fire in the morning. Local resources will continue to mop-up and patrol the other smaller fires in the area. Three additional fires came to life in the Jack Creek area around 7:00 p.m. this evening. These new holdover fires from Wednesday evening’s thunderstorm are being handled quickly by responding crews in the area, each less than 1/10 of an acre in size.
No homes are threatened, and no evacuation orders have been placed. Please be aware of any potential changes and follow Jackson County Emergency Management, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Josephine County Emergency Management and the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office for any evacuation information.
The Bureau of Land Management has closed the Rainie Falls Trail until further notice. Please help us protect firefighters and first responders by avoiding Galice Road and the Grave Creek area. The BLM is encouraging recreational boaters to avoid the river between Hellgate Canyon and Grave Creek.
Fire information is always available on our website, www.swofire.com or our Facebook page @ODF Southwest Oregon District.