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30-mile fire front menaces southwest Oregon towns
Oregon Live ^ | 7/30/02 | Beth Quinn

Posted on 07/30/2002 6:48:28 AM PDT by Grampa Dave

30-mile fire front menaces southwest Oregon towns

07/30/02

BETH QUINN

CAVE JUNCTION -- Wildland firefighters battled to keep a 30-mile-long wall of fire from reaching the Illinois Valley on Monday where 17,000 people were warned to get ready to flee.

From Our Advertiser

As the 70,000 acre Florence fire roared south toward the 20,000-acre Sour Biscuit blaze, firefighters dug a last-ditch fire line stretching along the western edge of the valley and southwestern Oregon communities.

Sixteen bulldozers worked the line on the steep ridges west of Woodrat, Tennessee and Eight Dollar mountains while 14 more wait along U.S. 199 in Selma, awaiting orders to join the fire fight.

Firefighters are preparing to set a 34,000-acre backfire that would be larger than most of the other fires being fought in Oregon.

"We are running dozers 24 hours a day," said Rick Hartigan of the Arizona Central West Zone Incident Management Team overseeing the firefighting.

If the fire hits the bulldozed line, they'll bombard it with fire retardant and water, but even with all that, fire officials told residents Sunday night, they weren't confident they could stop it.

"There is a very good chance that this fire is going to reach the valley floor," said Greg Gilpin, an incident commander for Oregon Department of Forestry. "It is so big and so awesome there is absolutely nothing you can do to stop this fire."

Fire officials warned area residents that the fire could reach the floor of the Illinois Valley today in a third straight day of extreme fire behavior.

Throughout the weekend and into Monday, the head of the Florence fire advanced a mile an hour with 150-foot flames and wind gusts up to 40 mph that threw spot fires up to two miles ahead. Three times the fire built plumes 30,000 feet tall and three times those plumes collapsed back into the fire with explosive force, further spreading the blaze.

"We have veteran firefighters who have never seen such fire behavior," said Hartigan.

"The forestry people all have their eyes rolled back," said Tim Birr of the Oregon Fire Marshal's overhead team. "This fire is kind of like the proverbial 5,000-pound gorilla that goes wherever it wants to go."

On the floor of the mountain-ringed Illinois Valley, firefighters went door-to-door on U.S. 199 from Selma to Kerby. At each spot the firefighters took a location fix with a global positioning system to add each building to the maps used for fire planning.

In addition, the structure firefighters assessed the defensibility of each house, noting which had fireproof roofs and brush-free zones that could be defended against fire and which were overgrown with trees and shrubbery and might be impossible to save.

"In cases where a home can be made more defensible, if they can take some simple steps, they will do it," said Birr.

But even homes that are well-prepared can fall victims to the flames, as two homeowners in Oak Flat learned Sunday. All 12 homes along the Illinois River had been singed on Thursday but survived, yet when the fire moved back through the area Sunday, two homes burned. Another home was lost at McCaleb Ranch along with eight outbuildings.

"There's higher percentage of nondefensible homes," said Kyle Kirchner, chief of the Illinois Valley Fire District and Josephine County Fire Defense Board. Homeowners are "interested now in getting defensible space, and it's too late."

Fire officials began making contingency plans for safety zones where firefighters and residents could find shelter should evacuation routes be cut.

Two of the four routes out of the valley to the south have already been cut off by other fires in Northern California. The only exits are north on U.S.199 to Grants Pass and by a remote forest road from Upper Deer Creek near Selma over the 5,000-foot crest of the Siskiyou Mountains to Williams.

"If it comes across through Selma and compromises that artery, we are preparing to shelter in place," said Kirchner. "We can now see the fire from Selma. As far as I'm concerned, it's imminent."

Fire shelters were being set up at the closed Selma School in Selma and the Illinois Valley High School in Cave Junction, both buildings made of materials designed to withstand fires that sit amidst several acres of cleared, defensible space. A third fire shelter planned for O'Brien had not been designated by early Monday evening.

With bulldozers working feverishly on smoke-shrouded ridges to build the last-ditch line to protect the communities under his care, Kirchner's thoughts turn to a new set of nightmare scenarios should the last-ditch line fail to hold the Florence fire.

"If it goes, now we're worried about the caves," he said, referring to the Oregon Caves National Monument 16 miles east of Cave Junction. "There's enough volatile dry fuel that we're going to have problems."

The fire is also moving northwest. Fire officials projected the blaze could reach homes outside Agness by Wednesday. It would have to jump the Rogue River to burn the town itself, but the fire, fueled by strong winds, has jumped the Illinois River several times, said Pam Leschak, Florence fire information officer.

A structure protection team was already assessing homes and removing brush and trees from around structures south of the Rogue River near Agness on Monday.

An 80-acre blaze closed a section of U.S. 199 near the Oregon/California border Monday. The Shelly Creek fire, burning up the steep canyon walls, was causing boulders and logs to fall onto the road, said Carol McCall, spokeswoman, Redwood National State Parks.

The fire also forced the evacuation of Patrick Creek Lodge, Patrick Campground, Bar-O-Boys Ranch, and a few houses near Gasquet, 20 miles northeast of Crescent City, Calif., in the Smith River Canyon. You can reach Beth Quinn at 541-474-5926 or by e-mail at bquinn@terragon.com.


TOPICS: Breaking News
KEYWORDS: burningoforegon; christines; enviralists; florencefire; greenburningagenda; greenjihadists; illinoisvalleyor; kitzhaberburnor; kitzhabersfolly; kitzsfirelegacy; oregonisburning; ruralcleansing; sourbiscuitfire
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To: Grampa Dave
"It is not really a fire road, but an old logging road that led to this remote camping/hunting/fishing area above the Klamath River."

Most fire access roads start out as logging roads. That's one of the things environazis were incorporating into their "roadless policy" propaganda early on. After the 2000 wildfire season, the environazi propaganda concentrated on 4x4's, snowmobiles and ATV's.

Those "Roadless policies" have guaranteed that many of these roads stopped recieving maintainance many years ago. After twenty years of no maintainance, you can find your best timber growing in the middle of an old logging road.

Partly for this reason, on State land in PA and NY, the minimum length of the resulting stumps from logging has been reduced from 12 to 16 inches to only 6 inches...so that firefighters in a hurry could drive their pickups over them without hanging their pumpkins up on the stumps.

Workers for the PA Conservation Department spend most of their time keeping old logging roads clear for fire access. Those are some reasons why we don't have those types of fires here in PA. Also, out forests and our timber are plenty healthy, WITHOUT massive burns. You can tell the "But fire makes forests healthier" environazis that.

81 posted on 07/30/2002 2:19:41 PM PDT by cake_crumb
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To: Grampa Dave
Take notice that the Sierra club and other radical enviro-wackos hate logging, mining and grazing. Why is it that they publish (on paper) their magazines? On slick paper no less which is not easily recycled. It's all about money and ego and power. Their magazines, web sites and life styles do not damage the environment, so we are to believe. We understand that logging, mining and grazing benefit the economy and our communities. Enviros shut down production and export factories to areas which have no environmental or pollution controls. Thus it seems that their real agenda is the destruction of the US and our lifestyle.
82 posted on 07/30/2002 2:25:57 PM PDT by lobo59
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To: PoisedWoman
"I'm sure they're thrilled to sacrifice their homes, livestock, lands to cleansing fires."

Hopefully, some of those wackos will recieve a wake up call similar to the one many of them recieved on 9-11 when they are allowed back to the areas where their homes once stood and are forced to survey the COMPLETE destruction that is the aftermath of a huge wildfire.

I saw Yellowstone both before and after the devastating wildfire there...which wouldn't have been anywhere near as bad, in terms of the loss of human life or the loss of habitat and forage, if it weren't for the "fire is the forest's friend" propaganda. I haven't been back since the "after". I do know that they're having a real problem with invasive, noxious weeds all these years later.

Hubby was one of those who fought that. He broke his ankle when he landed in an area rockier than they thought...and had to fight his way out, Indian tank and all. His ankle had to be rebroken when he finally got out. He doesn't talk about Yellowstone much, except to mention that. He knew many of the people who died.

83 posted on 07/30/2002 2:31:22 PM PDT by cake_crumb
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To: lobo59
I will try to find out what Club Sierra spends for rent just for its San Francisco Offices. They are the elite fascists of this century like their role models, the elite fascists of Europe before our GIs killed all of them in WWII.
84 posted on 07/30/2002 2:31:25 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: lobo59
Here is a little data from the Sac Bee article to back up what you commented about Club Sierra:

Comfortable office digs and sumptuous fund-raising banquets are another drain on donor dollars. The Sierra Club spends $59,473 a month for its office lease in San Francisco. In Washington, Greenpeace pays around $45,000 a month.

For the entire link on the high flying/spending elite fascists in the Enviral Gangs: (Link to Sac Bee's article on how the rich and famous elites Enviralist Fascists live)

85 posted on 07/30/2002 2:38:22 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: Grampa Dave
In Oregon, the relationship between the environment and the economy is changing. Industries that extract raw materials are stagnating, while industries that benefit from the presence of environmental amenities are growing rapidly.

Ash is a wonderful enviromental amenity, isn't it.

Stop the attacks by the wacko, extreme left-wing, enviro-nazis terrorist's on our Freedoms !!

Freedom Is Worth Fighting For !!

Molon Labe !!

86 posted on 07/30/2002 2:42:36 PM PDT by blackie
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To: cake_crumb
I'll try to paste in a letter to the editor that I sent to our local paper, doubt that they will run it here in yuppie heaven though.



Thank you to the environmental movement. The people of the US and especially the western states owe you. Your misguided, ignorant policies and tyrannical attitude about matters that you have no concept of reality toward has brought us directly to this disastrous fire season.
Before we were saddled with your deluded meddling, fires of the size that we are experiencing were relatively rare, not the expected situation. There used to be companies that built forest roads and they had dozers and equipment that could be mobilized early against the fires. They had experienced operators to run the equipment in rugged areas. Logging companies had equipment, they had crews in the woods with fire tools. They had professional timber fallers and their chain saws to mobilize in cases of forest fires. Ranchers with grazing allotments might be checking their cattle and have tools at hand. The cows graze down the grass and underbrush which create such unmanageable fire hazards. Thanks to your frivolous lawsuits and arrogant interference we now have fire hazards. Forest roads were an economic asset, that you have forced to be abandoned. They have ceased to be useable to get crews and equipment to fire scenes because of lack of maintenance and preservation, thanks.
Yes we do recognize that YOU are the reason that our logging industry is nearly dead, our economy is in shambles, and the dreams of families and their living wage jobs are destroyed. Now in case of fire it rages until the national guard must be mobilized, then they face three days of training before reaching the fire lines, all the while the fire rages on. One thing that I would like to ask is where are the fire brigades raised by the Sierra Club from their membership rolls, or by the Audubon groups? Could it be that you environmentalists can not get your satin soft hands dirty or blistered by engaging in a real effort to do a meaningful job of true environmental protection? Yes I understand that your manicured nails and lovely expensive hair do?s are what you truly care about.
We thank you for the smoke polluted air and health hazards now faced by so many people. We thank you for killing of untold numbers of wildlife, uncounted fish destroyed and birds and nesting areas lost forever. Thank you for the soil erosion that will come in the wake of these huge fires. Thank you for the trout streams and spawning beds that may never recover from your environmental orgy of destruction by fire. We now have more polluted air than would have occurred in many years of industrial production without any economic benefit to our cities, counties and states. Whole forests and ecosystems have been obliterated without economic gain to the state or local economies. The forests that have been destroyed will never create an economic benefit because your armies of lawyers will arrive to disable any attempt at salvage logging with your frivolous and nuisance lawsuits. Thank you.
87 posted on 07/30/2002 2:45:45 PM PDT by lobo59
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To: Grampa Dave
Ya can't kill too many veggies Dave... :o)

Thank God Kissinslobber's term is ending soon !!

Freedom Is Worth Fighting For !!

Molon Labe !!
88 posted on 07/30/2002 2:46:05 PM PDT by blackie
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To: Grampa Dave
That's what I thought. Is that road on public of private land?

EBUCK

89 posted on 07/30/2002 2:49:11 PM PDT by EBUCK
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To: cake_crumb
LOL. Good one. Enough to drive a poor boy insane..

EBUCK

90 posted on 07/30/2002 2:49:44 PM PDT by EBUCK
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To: Grampa Dave
I remember that story - now - thanks for linking to it. It goes into my EnviroNazi file.

It's great that the Sacremento Bee did this series of exposes...but maybe we should be asking the major news outlets why they never followed this up.

91 posted on 07/30/2002 2:50:09 PM PDT by cake_crumb
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To: cake_crumb
bttt
92 posted on 07/30/2002 2:51:13 PM PDT by f.Christian
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To: Grampa Dave
WorldNetDaily lists their address as Cave Junction.
93 posted on 07/30/2002 3:07:37 PM PDT by slowry
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To: Grampa Dave
150 FT flames,they say? Since I've given up watching any of the Alphabet News Channels,and barely any Fox, It's become all about reading online for me, I was wondering if Anyone has seen Photos or Video on TV of this Fire in Oregon.I'm just asking.Are they covering this story on your local station?
94 posted on 07/30/2002 3:17:58 PM PDT by Pagey
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To: Grampa Dave
Subsidized by federal tax dollars, environmental groups are filing a blizzard of lawsuits that no longer yield significant gain for the environment and sometimes infuriate federal judges and the Justice Department. During the 1990s, the U.S. Treasury paid $31.6 million in legal fees for environmental cases filed against the government.

Those who know the environment best -- the scientists who devote their careers to it -- say environmental groups often twist fact into fantasy to serve their agendas. That is especially true in the debate over one of America's most majestic landscapes: its Western evergreen forests. A 1999 report by the U.S. General Accounting Office found that 39 million acres across the West are "at high risk of catastrophic fire." Yet many groups use science selectively to oppose thinning efforts that could reduce fire risk.

"A lot of environmental messages are simply not accurate," said Jerry Franklin, a professor of forest ecology and ecosystem science at the University of Washington. "But that's the way we sell messages in this society. We use hype. And we use those pieces of information that sustain our position. I guess all large organizations do that."

And sometimes when nature needs help the most, environmental groups are busy with other things.

(snip)

(unsnip) In June 1998, The Nature Conservancy spent more than $1 million on a single fund-raising bash in New York City's Central Park. Carly Simon and Jimmy Buffett played. Masters of ceremonies included Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, Mike Wallace and Leslie Stahl. Variety magazine reported that the 1,100 guests were treated to a martini bar and a rolling cigar station.

Wowser! You mean Dan, Peter and Mike are in on it too!! And the greenies don't know what the hell they're talking about!! Revalations!!

Great article, recomended reading for all concerned. Re-Link to article

EBUCK

95 posted on 07/30/2002 3:24:36 PM PDT by EBUCK
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To: EBUCK
Wasn't that an incredible article by the Sac Bee re the elite fascists of the enviral.

Now you see why I call them the elite fascists. They ain't no raggedy a$$ed little commies. These are big time 6 figure incomers, living the great life and spending time with their elite Rat Friends in Congress and the Media.
96 posted on 07/30/2002 3:27:50 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: blackie
Remember, this is the article/bragging of the ONRC that I asked you to save last week. I was afraid that it would disappear. Well, it is no longer on their server.

Thanks for saving it for posterity.
97 posted on 07/30/2002 3:29:35 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: lobo59
Great letter. You should post that on your home page.
98 posted on 07/30/2002 3:31:00 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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To: lobo59
"Could it be that you environmentalists can not get your satin soft hands dirty or blistered by engaging in a real effort to do a meaningful job of true environmental protection?"

That was GREAT! Your whole POST was great! I HOPE they publish it.

99 posted on 07/30/2002 3:34:01 PM PDT by cake_crumb
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To: Pagey
Good question. I don't watch local news, and I live in the wine country of Kalifornia. I know that a week ago we talked to a relative in Portland, and he was not really aware of any bad fires. He likes to watch the news. He is fully aware now of the problems.
100 posted on 07/30/2002 3:36:24 PM PDT by Grampa Dave
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