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Homes south of Agness, Oregon get orders to evacuate
Oregon Live/Oregonian ^ | 16 August 2002 | R. GREGORY NOKES

Posted on 08/16/2002 8:45:03 AM PDT by Grampa Dave

More From The Oregonian

Homes south of Agness get orders to evacuate

08/16/02

R. GREGORY NOKES

The Curry County sheriff gave evacuation notices to residents of 30 homes three miles south of Agness late Thursday evening as the Biscuit fire continued its rapid spread north.

The fire came within three-fourths of a mile of the Oak Flats and Spud Road areas near Agness, a community of 150 along the Rogue River, said Dick Fleishman, a fire information officer. Officials decided to give evacuation notices in the area while it was still light out.

They did not include Agness, which remains under a pre-evacuation notice, Fleishman said.

Fire officials also decided Thursday to update plans to close the Rogue River to rafts and other river traffic if the Biscuit fire burns into the Rogue River Canyon.

But a decision to close the river is not imminent, they said. Fire managers plan to meet again Saturday to consider the plans and assess the fire threat.

"We need to plan for the worst case scenario," said Susan Mathison, a fire information officer. "There are contingencies in case the need should arise to protect the safety of our visitors."

Typically, 350 to 400 rafters and others who are on the river each day would have to be notified and helped out in the event of an evacuation order, Mathison said.

The nearly 400,000-acre Biscuit fire, Oregon's largest wildfire in more than a century, burned within approximately 10 miles of the section of the Rogue National Wild and Scenic River popular with river rafters. At its closest, the fire is within four miles of the river.

Officials called off a scheduled burnout of as much as 25,000 acres planned for Thursday night aimed at stopping the fire short of the Rogue and other scenic areas on the Biscuit's northern edge. Intense heat and low humidity had stoked the fire and could make the burnout difficult to control, said Tom Villuzzi, fire spokesman.

"Things are cooking," Villuzzi said.

Fire officials planned to reschedule the burn if conditions turn favorable.

For the second consecutive day, the fire put up a huge smoke column that was visible for miles, he said. A shift to winds from the west, which occurred late Thursday, could drive the fire into the proposed burnout area, reducing or even eliminating the need for a separate burnout.

Another fire, the East Antelope fire in Jackson County, had grown to 1,550 acres and kicked up smoke that could be seen in Ashland, where the Oregon Shakespeare Festival is under way.

The fire was nearly five miles northeast of Ashland, burning toward the south in the Grizzly Peak area, but it posed no threat to the town or the festival, said Dennis Turco, an Oregon Department of Forestry spokesman.

Turco said residents of a dozen homes on the Dead Indian Memorial Road, about two miles south of the fire, were advised the fire posed a potential threat. Nearly 450 firefighters battled the blaze, backed by air tankers and helicopters.

A burnout planned on the western edge of the East Antelope fire Thursday night, aimed at depriving the fire of fuel, was expected to be easily seen in Ashland, officials said.

On the Biscuit fire, the concern over closing the Rogue brought representatives of several agencies to Gold Beach to discuss contingency plans. They included the Curry County sheriff's office, the Oregon Department of Transportation, the firefighting command, and local fire departments, including those from Gold Beach and Pistol River.

"Fire conditions do not warrant closing of the river at this point," said Mathison, a retired U.S. Forest Service official. But she said if the fire threatens the canyon, officials need to know "how to get rafters out" and how to handle evacuation traffic.

But an evacuation decision would not be made lightly.

"We understand the grave impact -- economic and personal impact -- if we close the river for even a short time," she said. "Folks have waited years to get their permits" for the river.

Mathison said officials have a record of everyone entering the canyon, and all would have to be located.

Fire officials have plotted various points for the fire that would trigger an official response, such as a pre-evacuation warning or even an evacuation.

Mathison said the contingency planning would include possibly closing the scenic portion of the river to everyone at once or closing the river to new traffic while allowing those on the river to complete their trips.

The typical rafting trip is from three to five days, beginning at Grave Creek and leaving the river at Foster Bar, about four miles upstream from Agness.

Meanwhile, structural fire crews stood by at threatened homes and other buildings in Agness to the north and Pistol River to the west. The most intense burning on the Biscuit fire occurred Thursday in the area of Snow Camp Mountain, where a fire lookout was destroyed earlier in the week.

The Biscuit fire was considered 28 percent contained, meaning firefighters still must establish reliable containment lines around most of the fire. Officials said 100 miles of fire line remained to be constructed.

The second-largest fire still burning in the state, the 48,000-acre Tiller complex in Douglas County, was 41 percent contained but moving to the northwest. A contingent of 540 soldiers from Fort Riley, Kan., planned to return to Fort Riley after working on the fire for two weeks. R. Gregory Nokes: 503-221-8409; gregnokes@news.oregonian.com


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; US: Oregon
KEYWORDS: biscuitfire; christines; ecoterrorism; greenjihadists; kalmiopsisburning; oregonisburning; ruralcleansing; stopecoterrorism
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As usual, the Oregon Live Staff is focusing on feel good stuff for the weekend instead of real news.

So this is it for awhile.

The fire came within three-fourths of a mile of the Oak Flats and Spud Road areas near Agness, a community of 150 along the Rogue River, said Dick Fleishman, a fire information officer. Officials decided to give evacuation notices in the area while it was still light out.

Officials called off a scheduled burnout of as much as 25,000 acres planned for Thursday night aimed at stopping the fire short of the Rogue and other scenic areas on the Biscuit's northern edge. Intense heat and low humidity had stoked the fire and could make the burnout difficult to control, said Tom Villuzzi, fire spokesman.

"Things are cooking," Villuzzi said. ========================================================

Remember Wanderin's pictures from yesterday. In spite of the Floristry Service's Feel Good reports yesterday, it was obvious from the smoke seen in Wanderin's photos, that a lot of new burns were happening in this area.

So things are cooking again in this Green Jihadist Nightmare forced on these innocent Oregonians.

1 posted on 08/16/2002 8:45:03 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Granof8; AuntB; EBUCK; wanderin; Salvation; OregonRancher; dixiechick2000; blackie; jolly roger
This confirms what Granof 8 told us last night.

2 posted on 08/16/2002 8:46:44 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: WaterDragon; madfly; farmfriend; backhoe; Ernest_at_the_Beach
So bad news for those on the North End of the Green Ghihadist Terrorist Blaze.
3 posted on 08/16/2002 8:48:04 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: AAABEST; CedarDave; BOBTHENAILER; sauropod; countrydummy
Not good news for the good people living on the North End of this Green Jihadist Terrorism Fire.
4 posted on 08/16/2002 8:49:27 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: dead
FYI
5 posted on 08/16/2002 8:53:34 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Grampa Dave
click on thumbnail for larger pic

Navajo Hotshot Bradley John of Fort Defiance, Ariz., watches for spot fires during a burnout on the Biscuit fire near Brookings, Ore., Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 400,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century. Burnouts are set to deprive a wildfire of potential fuel. Fire crews are making solid progress on one of the more troublesome areas of the massive Biscuit fire, officials said Thursday. (AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 16 8:34 AM ET

A plume of smoke rises from the Biscuit fire near Pistol River, Ore., Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 400,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century.(AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 15 9:49 PM ET

A burnout rages on the Biscuit fire near Brookings, Ore., Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 400,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century. Fire crews are making solid progress on one of the more troublesome areas of the massive Biscuit fire in southwestern Oregon, officials said Thursday. (AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 15 8:41 PM ET

Navajo Hotshot Alfonso Dawez of Fort Defiance, Ariz., sets a burnout on the Biscuit fire near Brookings, Ore., Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 400,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century. (AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 15 8:41 PM ET

Snake River Hotshots head off for burnout operations on the Biscuit fire near Brookings, Ore., Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 390,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century. (AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 15 2:45 PM ET

Snake River Hotshot Brian O'Donnell, from Kingston, Penn., lights a burnout while battling the Biscuit fire near Brookings, Ore., Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2002. The blaze has blackened over 390,000 acres and is the largest in Oregon in over a century. A burnout is started to deprive a wildfire of potential fuel. (AP Photo/John Gress)
- Aug 15 8:30 AM ET

6 posted on 08/16/2002 8:54:55 AM PDT by glock rocks
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To: Grampa Dave
Oregon Homes Near Fire Evacuated, 08/16/2002

By PETER PRENGAMAN, Associated Press Writer


The Curry County sheriff ordered evacuation of about 30 homes in the Oak Flats area south of Agness Thursday evening as flames from the Biscuit Fire came within a mile.


But many residents stayed put.


"We will stay here to defend our properties," said Willis Crouse, a carpenter and volunteer fireman who has lived in Oak Flats for 25 years.



Navajo Hotshot Alfonso Dawez of Fort Defiance, Ariz., sets a burnout on the Biscuit fire near Brookings. (AP Photo)

Residents had the right to stay and defend their homes. But once they leave, they can't come back.


Crouse said that after watching the fire crawl closer the past several weeks, residents felt more in tune with it, though not more comfortable.


"It is like some kind of monster eating its way around us," he said.



National Guard troops were guarding the roads leading to Oak Flats and Spud Road to keep residents from re-entering. For any who decided to evacuate, the Red Cross set up a shelter at Riley Creek Elementry School in Gold Beach, about 25 miles west. But by 11:30 p.m. Thursday, no one had arrived at the shelter, said Pat Irish of the Red Cross.


Fire officials say it will probably be a few days -- depending on the weather and crews' success battling it -- before the fire gets in reach of the houses. But they didn't want to take any chances.





"The fire hasn't blown up," said fire spokesman Dick Fleishman. "But it's progressing that way, and the sheriff thought it would be safer to evacuate during the day than at night."





In other troublesome areas of the Biscuit Fire, now burning on almost 400,000 acres, crews are making solid progress, fire officials said.


Wind-borne embers had been sparking small fires near Quail Prairie Mountain, on the southwestern flank of the fire near Brookings. But crews were able to do some burning out in the area Thursday, fire information officer Mark Wilkening said, and were able to shore up lines built to stop the fire.


Structural firefighters from around the state, summoned by Gov. John Kitzhaber in his record 10th use of the 1940 Emergency Conflagration Act this year, were headed to the Chetco River area, around the fire's southwestern tip, to help evaluate fire danger to homeowners.




The Biscuit Fire is now the largest recorded fire in Oregon history, burning primarily on the Siskiyou National Forest.


The fire has burned for a month since a lightning strike ignited it deep in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. With 6,848 people assembled from around the country, as well as Canada, New Zealand and Australia, the fire has cost $62.6 million to fight.


The Biscuit Fire was 28 percent contained, with the most secure lines on the eastern and southern flanks. The threat to the 17,000 residents of the Illinois Valley diminished, but an evacuation notice remained in effect.


Other Oregon Fires


Elsewhere in Oregon, the East Antelope Fire grew to 1,550 acres and curled around the southeast slopes of Grizzly Peak. Flames could be seen four-and-a-half miles away in Ashland. The fire was sparked Tuesday by power lines sagging into tree limbs.


Ashland did not appear to be threatened.


Four hundred people are now working on that fire along with 14 helicopters, although the area is still too smoky to bring in air tankers.

7 posted on 08/16/2002 9:00:27 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: glock rocks
Thank you and good morning!

You driving the Vette to Idaho to buy some lottery tickets?
8 posted on 08/16/2002 9:01:37 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Grampa Dave; All
Forest Service spokesperson says this morning it will be September/October when the rains come to put out the fires, and we can expect 100,000 more acres to burn by then.

Zone 2 still has some problems at Quail Prairie.

Weather forecast is for low humidity and high temperatures.

Zone 4 is active in the Lawson Creek drainage.

Snow Camp area is still spotting outside lines.

President Bush and Rep. Defazio will be visiting on Aug. 22.


Sheriff Kent Owens reports a full evacuation, based on weather. Local firefighters from nine jurisdictions at Agness/Oak Flat.

No more to add to your report.
9 posted on 08/16/2002 9:14:32 AM PDT by Granof8
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To: All
Looks like it wasn't a full evacuation after all. I see at least one resident stayed.
10 posted on 08/16/2002 9:18:08 AM PDT by Granof8
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To: Grampa Dave
Good morning G'Pa! Looks like they'll be evacuating my town if this continues (it's only 250 miles!).

WATERMELON BA$TARDS BUMP!!!!

EBUCK

11 posted on 08/16/2002 9:25:22 AM PDT by EBUCK
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To: Grampa Dave; glock rocks
Yesterday we had a fire in north/central Nevada, below Winnemucca. A BLM employee pulled his pickup off the road and started a blaze that burnt 400 acres.

Allow me to say, "Thank you Federal BLM Employee for making us aware of the fire dangers in Nevada!"

My daughter says it is so smokey at Lake Tahoe that you can't see the mountains across the lake. She is at the Northwest end of lake.

12 posted on 08/16/2002 9:37:23 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: Granof8; wanderin; All
The latest combo map from Granof8's web site is below. The official Floristry Circus Site has not updated their map since Monday, 12 August. That map was from the size of the fire on Sunday, 11 August. It is like they don't want people to realize that the fire is growing in size and has basically consumed the Former Kalmiopsis Wildnerness Area.

This latest satellite map confirms that the fire has been burning to the North as per Granof 8's report this morning and Wanderin's photos last night.:


13 posted on 08/16/2002 9:41:52 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: glock rocks
"Fire crews are making solid progress on one of the more troublesome areas of the massive Biscuit fire in southwestern Oregon, officials said Thursday. (AP Photo/John Gress)"

Huh? He needs to call the local fire dept. to get the truth.

14 posted on 08/16/2002 9:42:53 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: EBUCK
The entire state of Oregon might be on evacuation notice before the Green Jihadist Massive Rural Cleansing Fires are put out by the fall/winter rains.

Got your stickers yesterday. One is on my front bumper and one on the back.

My wife suggested to double the size. She saw them when she pulled in the driveway and could not read them 10 feet away.

So if you order more, please double the size and I will buy at least 5 more from you.

These are the perfect size to mail to the various Rat congressits and senators.
15 posted on 08/16/2002 9:47:08 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: B4Ranch
Thanks for the update.

I had thought about driving up to Truckee to fish the Truckee River this week. I made a call to a source up there, and he said the same thing your daughter said about the smoke. He lives there and had no idea where the smoke was/is coming from. He said it was so bad that he was probably heading to Bodega on the Coast to get away from it. He has a trailer, and he and his wife load it up with baby pictures, family records and stuff that can't be replaced if burned. Then, they drive to the coast. It is a 5th wheeler, and he keeps a pickup filled with fuel fastened to the 5th wheeler incase they have to leave quickly. I think with the fires that smoked you last summer, they spent more time on the coast than Tahoe last summer/fall.
16 posted on 08/16/2002 9:54:48 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Grampa Dave
Yah, I noticed them being a little hard to read as well. There is good in that though. I was stopped at a light and noticed some damn dirty hippies pulling up behind me...I watched as they strained to read the sticker through the haze inside their raggedy old Micro-Bus (that was spewing black smoke the whole time) and the resin accumulation on the front windshield. The look on the drivers face after working so hard to read it was great, worth every effort!

I'll definately make them bigger for the next batch.

EBUCK

17 posted on 08/16/2002 9:55:05 AM PDT by EBUCK
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To: AuntB; newriverSister; PARKFAN
ping
18 posted on 08/16/2002 10:04:43 AM PDT by countrydummy
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To: All
Here is a new thread that I just posted about the Floristry Circus Druids refusing to allow an early attempt to control the Sour Biscuit Fire. (Fire officials have acknowledged a request was made to attempt to extinguish the Biscuit Fire when it was only 100 acres, but that request was turned down. )
19 posted on 08/16/2002 10:20:36 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Grampa Dave; EBUCK
These are the perfect size to mail to the various Rat congressits and senators.

I'm gonna mail my two to Chainsaw Tom Daschle and Logger Tim Johnson, those two stellar senators from the ONLY state to allow thinning and clearing to prevent worse fires, thanks to Hypocrite Majority Leader Millionaire whose own Mother subsists on Social Security alone. Thanks for helping your mother out Tommy.

Nice job on the stickers ebuck.

20 posted on 08/16/2002 11:30:03 AM PDT by BOBTHENAILER
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