Fire danger rises to “high” on Thursday

According to the Oregon Department of Forestry, the fire danger, which dropped to moderate on August 19, will rise again to high on Thursday, August 29.

“Warm, dry weather has returned for the holiday weekend. Fuels are drying out,” said Mike Cafferata, ODF Forest Grove District forester, in an email, noting that humidity will be near -6°C starting Thursday.

The fire danger in areas protected by the Oregon Department of Forestry in the Northwest Oregon Forest Protective Association (NWOFPA) is set at high, or yellow, as of 12:01 a.m. Thursday.

The fire risk has been set to “high” since July 10. The following fire protection levels (Industrial Fire Precaution Levels, IFPL) apply to industrial customers:
NW-1: IFPL1
NW-2: IFPL2
NW-3: IFPL2

The NWOFPA region includes areas such as Gales Creek, Buxton, Timber, Manning, and the Tillamook State Forest. It extends to the Columbia River on the north, the Pacific Ocean on the west, Sheridan on the south, and parts of Gales Creek, the Killin Wetlands outside of Banks, and Scappoose on the east.

The public and industrial users can learn about current fire restrictions by visiting the agency’s fire restrictions and closures website or by calling the ODF office in Forest Grove at 503-357-2191.