Bend firefighters battled two fires Monday afternoon, starting with a fast-moving brush fire behind the Red Lion Hotel on Butler Market Road. Crews, with help from Bend Police and the U.S. Forest Service, stopped the flames at just over an acre before the hotel was damaged. Guests were briefly evacuated, and Butler Market Road and part of the southbound parkway were impacted. Investigators say the fire appears to have started from an abandoned fire in a houseless encampment.

While crews were mopping up, a house fire broke out on Starling Drive. Officials say food left on a stove caused about 100-thousand dollars in damage. The occupants had returned home earlier in the day and accidentally left food on the stove as they left again. Red Cross is helping the homeowners.

Deschutes County leaders say fire crews are stretched thin after Wednesday’s storm sparked dozens of new fires. Commissioner Phil Chang says the region is already at Preparedness Level 5, meaning aircraft, crews, trucks, bulldozers, and other firefighting resources are deployed. Chang tells KBND News residents can help by avoiding preventable fire starts, especially with dry vegetation, volatile weather, and at least two months left in the typical fire season. He says crews are responding strategically and safely, despite being under pressure from two lightning storms in seven days. Stage 2 public use restrictions begin Saturday, banning campfires on all public lands, including campgrounds.

(Sisters, OR) – Wednesday a pyrocumulus cloud (a dense, puffy cloud created by intense surface heating) formed over the fire prior to the arrival of the forecasted thunderstorms. The pyrocumulus cloud created its own weather system over the fire area and produced its own lightning.

Extreme fire behavior due to critically dry fuels and gusty outflow winds from the afternoon thunderstorms pushed the fire downhill toward Indian Ford and Wilt Roads and has crossed the Stevens Canyon Road. Firefighters encountered 150 to 200-foot flame lengths; requiring all resources to fall back on the south end of the fire and modify tactics to maintain firefighter safety and protect structures.

Heavy equipment constructed a fire line in and around the Wilt Road area. Firefighters successfully extinguished numerous spot fires near Wilt Rd and No Name Rd. Four structure task forces worked swing shift into the evening hours, providing additional protection near homes in the Indian Ford and Wilt Road areas. The fire received precipitation from the thunderstorm. Incident Commander, Craig Pettinger, encouraged the night shift by saying, “We’ve been handed a gift, and we need to take advantage of this break in the weather.”

Precipitation has calmed fire activity and will provide an opportunity to flank the active fire area. On the southern and western sides of the fire heavy equipment and crews constructed direct control lines utilizing attack where possible. Structural resources continued to triage and provide point protection on homes through the night.

Multiple road closures went into effect including Middle View Road, Indian Ford Road, and the section between Green Ridge Road and Meadow View Road. Central Electric Cooperative has deenergized power to homes on Stevens Canyon Road to Pine Glen Road and north of Indian Ford Road. For more information visit the Central Electric Coop website at www.cec.coop

Public Meeting An in-person community meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 23, at the Sisters High School Auditorium. The meeting will be live-streamed for virtual attendees via Facebook on the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire District Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/SCSRFPD

An in-person community meeting will be held Thursday, at 6:30 p.m. at the Sisters High School auditorium. The meeting will also be livestreamed on the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire Department Facebook page: facebook.com/SCSRFPD.

Fire managers anticipate the Box Springs burning in Crook and Jefferson counties will merge with the Crosswhite fire within the next 24 hours. The Crosswhite is 131-thousand acres burning in Wheeler county, part of the massive Rowe Complex fire.

Private property on the north of Indian Ford Creek to the Forest Boundary of the Akawa Butte Fire has been upgraded to a Level 2 (Be Set) Evacuation Notice. 

The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning in effect from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Wednesday for abundant lightning.    

Governor Tina Kotek declared a conflagration for another Central Oregon wildfire Monday. The Akawa Butte and Brewer fires continue to force evacuations in Deschutes and Jefferson counties. The Akawa Butte Fire, 13 miles northeast of Sisters, has burned over 10-thousand acres. And, the Brewer Fire, 13 miles east of Madras, has burned over 24-thousand acres. Oregon’s largest incident is the Rowe Creek Complex, south of Fossil … it’s burned nearly 143-thousand acres. The Hay Creek Complex, west of Condon, is 123-thousand acres. Outside Post, the Coyote Fire is now at 21-thousand acres, with the nearby Henry Fire at 20-thousand. In Southern Oregon, the East Evans Creek fire is 15-thousand acres.

By comparison, last year there were 26 fires burning more than 142-thousand acres through this date. This year, there are 40 large fires that are burning more than 410-thousand acres.