WA fire agencies head to Oregon to help fight massive 'Double Creek Fire'
'Double Creek Fire' (Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal)
SALEM, Ore. - The Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM) has requested the help of multiple firefighting agencies out of Washington State to help fight the Double Creek Fire, which has exploded in size and continues to grow in the northeastern part of the state.
Officials say the Double Creek Fire is currently Oregon’s largest wildfire, burning more than 100,000 acres with 0% containment. Hot temperatures, dry conditions and gusty winds in this weekend’s weather forecast is causing serious concern all over the Pacific Northwest.
According to the OSFM, three Washington task forces from Snohomish, King, Pierce, Kitsap, Chelan and Clark counties have been ordered to assist in this massive fire. One of these task forces will report directly to the Double Creek Fire, the other two will position themselves in Wasco and Lane Counties. These two task forces will give Oregon firefighters the upper hand in case any other fires pop up.
"We want to thank the Oregon fire service and our partners from Washington for their dedication to protecting Oregon communities," Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. "This extra capacity will allow our office to be nimble and help local fire agencies during this critical point in the fire season. We ask those who live in Oregon and those visiting to be aware of the dry conditions and take the necessary steps to prevent sparking a wildfire."
Last Saturday, the Double Creek fire was only six square miles in size. By Sunday morning, it grew to nearly 60 square miles. In response to this, Oregon State Governor Kate Brown issued a declaration that allowed the OSFM to take command, and send other agency resources to help their local fire crews.
In addition to Level 3 evacuations for some Wallowa County communities, Pacific Power has announced they will be shutting off power to thousands of people, in order to prevent any more wildfires from popping up amid the wildfire weather conditions.
The company says they will be shutting off power just after midnight on Thursday, and the outages will last through Saturday. Affected areas include Lincoln, Tillamook, Douglas, Linn, Marion and Polk Counties.
If you would like to learn more about these power outages or share this information, the link to Pacific Power’s website can be found here.
The same weather system expected to bring wildfire danger to Oregon will also hover over Washington state. On Thursday, The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued a warning, saying the dry, hot, windy weather will be a recipe for wildfires - even in Western Washington.
"It’s important to remember that we’re all in this together," Franz said. "Practicing good prevention habits keeps our skies clear and our firefighters safe."
FOX 13’s Brian MacMillan is tracking red flag warnings Friday and Saturday. Click here for his full weather forecast.
RELATED: ‘We’re all in this together’; DNR says Western WA at risk for severe wildfires this weekend
Red flag wildfire warnings issued in Washington this weekend
With 90 degree temperatures in the weather forecast, red flag warnings are in place to prevent new wildfires from popping up. As of Thursday morning, there are multiple fires burning across the state, decreasing air quality in some places of Puget Sound.