However, that doesn’t mean smaller fires aren’t burning. Right now, the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center (NWCC) reports there are no large active fires in the state. But what about fires this year, especially with fires that burn close to the state border, namely in Northern California? Oregon has a long history of fires, as we’ve already pointed out. However, eight people were injured during the blaze. Most of the damage was confined to wilderness areas, and no lives or homes were lost. Cause: Human – Logging, and the popularity of a flammable plant – Gorseīurning for just over a month, the pair of wildfires known as the B&B Complex Fires required 2,300 firefighters to get it under control at its peak.By the time the Bandon fire was put out, 10 people were dead, and only a few isolated buildings were left standing. It also meant that in 1936, when a nearby forest fire raged, it quickly spread to the small gorse-filled town, and resulting in an intense inferno. Unfortunately, gorse is an extremely oily and flammable plant, but also a noxious weed. When the town was founded, in the late 19th century, town founder George Bennet insisted his favorite shrub, gorse surround the area. And that brings us to the Bandon Fire of 1936. So far, we’ve mostly talked about massive Oregon forest fires that destroyed land and buildings and caused some evacuations, but by and large, never leveled close to an entire town. Ranchers had to scramble to move livestock, and in the forests, many trees over 100 years old, were destroyed. At the time, it was the largest wildfire fire since the Long Draw Fire of 2012. The Buzzard Complex Fire devastated grazing lands around Buzzard Butte and beyond. That means the fire wasn’t 100% contained until the end of December 2002. July is just the start of the fire season, and 2002’s was already busy, resulting in a shortage of firefighting crews and equipment. It was the result of several thunderstorms starting five smaller fires in Oregon and California that then joined together to form the Biscuit Fire in mid-July of 2002. Named after Biscuit Creek, this fire burned 780 square miles of the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest. Most of the damage occurred on public lands run by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), but that means large areas of grazing land for livestock, such as cattle was damaged. The fire began as the result of lightning striking dry grass and brush on the Northern section of Blue Mountain, an area of high desert in the state. Known at the time as one of the state’s most damaging fires since the American Civil War, the Long Draw Fire raged through nearly 800 square miles of land. Cause: Human – 2 boys burning a hornet’s nest.The Yacolt Burn killed as many as 55 people before it was through. No doubt, dry weather, lightning, and the human activities mentioned came together to form the “perfect storm” for an epic and deadly inferno. Other human causes include logging, berry picking, and camping. While several smaller fires joined together to form the complex burn, some due to weather, one of the larger fires ignited when two boys tried to burn a hornets’ nest not too far from Eagle Creek. Yacolt Burn wasn’t one wildfire, but a series of fires that raged across Oregon and Washington State over the first part of September 1902. Ultimately the fire burned 191,090 acres and the destruction of a prehistoric Native American site. The area experiences hot, dry winds and high-pressure systems during the summer months, which causes the eponymous “ Chetco Effect,” sometimes called the Brookings Effect. The Chetco Bar Fire started in July 2017 in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. Let’s take a look at seven of Oregon’s largest and most destructive wildfires from 1902 to 2017 below: 1. Unfortunately, those same forests and deserts can and do fuel epic fires. The Pacific Northwest region is home to vast forests that are the home of flora and fauna, and the western portion of the state fits that description, whereas the eastern part of the state is home to dry, desert brush, more similar to the Southwest. Oregon Sweet Home Fire Resource Notable Wildfires in Oregon’s Historyįrom logging mishaps in the early part of the 20th century to youthful folly to dry weather and lightning storms, the state of Oregon has a long history when it comes to wildfires.
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