A weekend lightning storm ignited several small fires on the Siuslaw National Forest but quick responses by firefighters positioned at strategic locations kept the fires small.
Resource sharing and coordination with neighboring agencies – including the first use of smoke jumpers in the Siuslaw’s history — proved instrumental to success during the initial attack phase, the agency said in a news release Tuesday. As of Tuesday, all fires are contained and controlled within containment lines.
Three of the fires were in the Rock Creek watershed near Marys Peak. On Saturday, firefighters along with smoke jumpers deployed to the South Fork fire. This marked the first time on record smoke jumpers responded to a fire on the Siuslaw National Forest, agency spokeswoman Joanie Schmidgall said. The fire was contained at three-fourths of an acre.
Firefighters received additional aid from a scooper plane and a helicopter dropping water. Measures were taken to preserve the watershed while aggressively suppressing the fire and no retardant was used, Schmidgall said.
Two smaller unnamed fires were both contained at one-tenth of an acre and considered out when firefighters could no longer detect heat or smoke.
The two-acre Velvet Creek fire is located in the Indian Creek watershed east of Florence on steep ground in mature timber but is 100 percent lined with fire line and hose lays, Schmidgall said. Mop-up operations are expected to conclude in the next few days.
While these fires resulted from lightning strikes, human-caused fire starts remain the most common source of wildfire on the Siuslaw National Forest, the agency said. Fire restrictions have been in place on the Siuslaw since July 19. Campfires are banned except within established fire rings in developed campgrounds and sand camping in specific areas in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and at Sand Lake.