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Powell Butte 2-Alarm Wildfire Out
08/20/2002

By ABE ESTIMADA, JIM PARKER, and TRACY BARRY, KGW Staff

Firefighters from Portland and Gresham mopped up a hilltop blaze in east Portland that exploded about noon and threatened to advance on nearby homes.

The two-alarm, brush and grass fire at the popular Powell Butte Nature Park blackened about 15 acres before firefighters brought the blaze under control shortly before 2 p.m. Tuesday. The cause of the fire is unknown.

At first, firefighters were concerned that hikers were in the 600-acre nature area. They concentrated their efforts on preventing the blaze from spreading to houses sprinkling the hillsides.

Smoke from the Powell Butte fire. (KGW Photo)

The situation was desperate enough that at one point, firefighters pondered calling in helicopter drops.

“It’s a matter of trying to corral the fire so it doesn’t get down into where the homes are,” said Portland Fire Bureau spokesman Neil Heesacker.

Plumes of smoke could be seen for miles in the Portland metro area. The emergency shut down nearby streets, notably 162nd Avenue near Powell Boulevard.

Dry grass, brush and blackberry bushes fed the flames. Water was also in short supply when firefighters made their initial attack about 12:45 p.m.

“One of the problems is you have a mountain there, and you don’t have a lot of access there where you can drive up your fire engines up those steep hills to where…the fire is burning,” Heesacker said.

Firefighters rushed water up the hillsides, using four-wheel drive vehicles towing 200-gallon water tanks.

After a second alarm was sounded, six more brush units converged on the scene. That force included nine engine companies, a water tender and a unit from the Gresham fire department.

At least one occupant of a nearby home said firefighters gained the upper hand on the blaze fairly quickly.

“When it first started, we saw a lot of smoke, we could see it, but it wasn’t so thick,” said Tina Johnson, a caregiver who was caring for a patient at 3930 SE 162nd Ave.

Johnson first noticed trouble when she heard sirens closing in on the manufactured home complex, which harbors dozens of houses. She stepped outside to check it out.

“(A neighbor) pointed over the mountain, over the trees and told me where the fire was,” Johnson said.

Johnson said the road was blocked off. Only fire engines from Portland and Gresham and police cars entered the neighborhood. With more firefighters and engines parked in front of the home, she said she didn’t feel threatened by the fire.

“Not with this many fire trucks, no,” she said.

Three Firefighters Hurt in Siuslaw Fire
08/20/2002

By kgw.com and AP Staff

Three firefighters have been injured while fighting the Siuslaw fire between Eugene and Florence. None of the injuries are reported to be serious.

The Siuslaw fire is now burning on about 725 acres of public and private land. It was first reported Saturday and is now 35 percent contained. On Monday night, firefighters lit backburns to help stop the blaze from spreading.

One firefighter fell off a vertical drop and suffered five broken ribs. A second firefighter looking for the first one also fell, and suffered a hairline fracture of the wrist.

A third firefighter suffered torn ligaments when he slipped on a rock.
None of the three were immediately identified, but all were taken to a Eugene hospital and reported in good condition.

About 100 firefighters, 4 helicopters, 5 water tenders, 5 engines and two bulldozers. Fire commanders have asked for 400 more firefighters to help fight the wildfire.

To help bolster the firefighting efforts, the Oregon Department of Forestry is sending 120 soldiers from the Oregon Army National Guard's 1249th Engineer Battalion to the front lines.

It is the third time in the last 12 months that the unit has been called up to assist in fire suppression. But their mission in the Siuslaw River fire will be different this time because they won't be on mop-up duty, said Maj. Jeff Julum, a spokesman for the Oregon National Guard. Instead, the soldiers will be used to battle fires directly alongside regular firefighters.

Steep terrain filled with heavy fuels have made the Siuslaw River Valley difficult to battle. Winds transport firebrands, igniting spot fires. Burning logs rolling downhill have crossed containment lines.

The fire was first reported on Saturday by a passing motorist. When firefighters arrived, they found a quarter of an acre burned. But thanks to low humidity, hot weather and northwest winds, the fire has spread. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.