JACKSON & JOSEPHINE COUNTIES, Ore. (August 4, 2021) – Firefighters on the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) Southwest Oregon District continued to make good progress overnight on a number of fires burning on the district. Out of 66 fires ignited by lightning since Thursday that ODF Southwest, there are currently only 2 active fires in Jackson and Josephine counties – the Round Top and Buck Rock Fires:
- The Round Top Fire, located 10 miles northwest of Shady Cove. It remains 23 acres, 100% lined and 100% plumbed, meaning they have hose secured around the fire and will have water easily accessible. While containment didn’t increase overnight, lines are holding strong, and mop-up work will likely begin today, depending on conditions.
- The Buck Rock Fire, located 5 miles north of Trail. It remains 17 acres and 100% lined. Containment jumped from 10% to 80% overnight. Those mop-up efforts will continue on Wednesday.
There are number burning in neighboring districts, including the Douglas Forest Protective Association (DFPA) and U.S. Forest Service Umpqua National Forest that ODF is assisting on. DPFA and USFS Umpqua National Forest are working on several fires in the Railroad Gap area; ODF Southwest and the U.S. Forest Service Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest have both sent resources to our neighbors up north; ODF will continue to assist on these active incidents however we can. Information on these specific fires can be found on https://www.facebook.com/skylineridgecomplex/, https://www.facebook.com/DouglasForestProtectiveAssociation and https://www.facebook.com/UmpquaNationalForest.
ODF will continue to do reconnaissance flights to check on fires that have been extinguished and search for potential new fires that could ignite in windy conditions today. The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for the eastern portion of Jackson County on Wednesday, from 2 – 10 p.m.; fires can start and spread easily in these conditions.
Smoke from wildfires burning in Northern California remains in the air over Jackson and Josephine Counties. Information on general smoke reports can be found online at https://fire.airnow.gov/.
Additional information about fire season is also available online on our website, www.swofire.com, our Facebook page, @ODFSouthwest and our Twitter account, @swofire.