North Pelican Fire P.M. Update, August 18, 2017

North Pelican Fire Perimeter, August 18, 2017

A community meeting will be held tomorrow at the Rocky Point Fire Station at 10 a.m.

As of this evening, the lightning-caused North Pelican Fire has grown to an estimated 500 acres with no containment. Today, smoke in the area limited the use of aerial resources, but two helicopters were able to drop buckets of water on areas of concern and allow for aerial supervision. The fire continues to burn in a remote area on Pelican Butte but is growing towards Westside Road.

Firefighters are prepping Forest Service roads to the east and north of the fire along the base of Pelican Butte to use as potential containment lines. The fire is currently burning in dangerous, steep and rocky terrain, so no firefighters have been deployed on the active edge of the fire.

The South Central Oregon Fire Management Type 3 team, with Leland Hunter as Incident Commander, is managing the fire. An incident command post is being set up at the Harriman Springs Resort and Marina in the community of Rocky Point.

Smoke from forest fires around southern Oregon and northern California is impacting the Klamath Basin area. The unusual winds from the north that are responsible for pushing the smoke into the Basin are expected to continue through Sunday. Air quality advisories are available at klamathair.org.

When smoke is visible motorists are encouraged to drive with their headlights on. Please use extreme caution when driving near firefighters and equipment. No closures are currently in place, however forest users are encouraged to avoid Pelican Butte for eclipse viewing on Monday. A closure of that road is being considered to reduce possible conflicts with responders.

A Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is in place over the fire area to ensure the safety of our fire fighting aircraft. FDC 7/5595

South Central Oregon Fire Management Partnership is an interagency fire management program that provides comprehensive wildland fire service to south central Oregon and northwest Nevada. The partnership strives to achieve a more efficient, effective and integrated interagency fire management program for all participating agencies on the land administered and protected by each agency.

Participating agencies include: Fremont-Winema National Forest, Lakeview District BLM (Bureau of Land Management), Sheldon-Hart Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Crater Lake National Park and Klamath-Lake District ODF (Oregon Department of Forestry).

For more information, contact Fire Information Officer, Celeste Prescott with the South Central Oregon Fire Management Partnership at 907-244-9376 or scofmp.fire.info@gmail.com. 

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