A 21-year-old federal firefighter was killed in an on-duty vehicle accident on Friday, August 4, near Powers, Oregon. Benjamin Sapper from Boulder, Colorado was a handcrew member on the Gold Beach Ranger District of the Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest in southwest Oregon.
“This is a devastating loss of one of our own Gold Beach firefighters,” District Ranger Kailey Guerrant told KATU-TV. “We have a tight-knit community on the Gold Beach and Powers Ranger Districts, and we stand together in grief and support for his family, friends, and fellow firefighters during this heartbreaking time.”
Benjamin Sapper photo courtesy USFS
Benjamin graduated from Boulder High School and the University of Colorado with a degree in Applied Mathematics.
KDRV-TV reported that Sapper was on duty and traveling with his crew when their rig was involved in a vehicle crash. Coquille Fire & Rescue said the vehicle left the roadway above the community of Powers.
Sapper was an avid baseball player, chess player, and skier who planned to attend grad school in earth sciences this fall at the University of British Columbia.
Our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to his co-workers on the Gold Beach crew.
As the Bedrock Fire near Fall Creek Reservoir east of Eugene, Oregon burns on the Willamette National Forest, officials are asking the public to help with tips to determine who or what started the fire.
According to a report by KLCC Radio, the fire was called in on Saturday, July 22, and grew to 300 acres by the next day. Crews worked overnight on the fire — and to protect nearby buildings on private land. A Type 2 team took over Sunday evening.
Named for the nearby Middle Fork Ranger District’s Bedrock Campground, the fire put up enough smoke on Tuesday to temporarily pause air ops, but firefighting helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft returned later. Two CL-415s scooped water from Lookout Point Lake, and additional aircraft have been ordered.
Chris Pietsch with the Register-Guard caught this superb shot of an Aircrane working the fire.
KEZI-TV reported that crews are building lines along the ridges between Little Cowhorn Mountain and Fawn Peak, and are assessing firelines that remain from previous incidents (including the Cedar Creek Fire) to help in containment.
Fire Behavior Analyst Dean Warner said the fire has been more active than expected in this area for late July. “Fuels are abnormally dry for this time of the season due to drought,” he said. “Drier fuels take less energy to ignite, and burn more rapidly and intensely than wetter fuels.”
Fire crews are working to establish firelines along the ridgelines between Little Cowhorn Mountain and Fawn Peak.
Little Cowhorn Mountain Lookout to the north of the Bedrock Fire. The main body of the structure has been wrapped by crews with fire-resistant material.
The fire is currently sized at 6,161 acres. Smoke from the fire is spreading into central Oregon, affecting air quality as far east as Bend. Weather conditions are expected to remain hot and dry, which could exacerbate the fire’s spread, according to the Northwest IMT 13 headed up by Brian Gales and Eric Riener, which took over on July 25.
Bedrock Fire map
Extreme fire behavior and gusty winds have pushed the fire to rapid growth, and mixed ownership of private and federal lands coupled with old fire scars means a checkerboard of fuel types. Mixed age classes of timber from slash and young managed stands to late seral stage timber are spread across the landscape, with light dry lichen moss draped in the canopies, exacerbating spotting. Steep slopes in the area have encouraged uphill runs, so the fire gets established in crowns and makes for spotting up to ¾ mile from the fire’s edge.
Afternoon winds have driven the fire to spread up drainages — including Alder, Hehe, and Fall creeks to the northeast and in the south at both Andy and Rubble creeks. As fire has moved into old burn scars, the intensity decreases, but abundant fine fuels (likely resulting from this year’s late rainy start to the season) maintain the fire’s spread.
On Thursday, it’s predicted that consistent weather conditions will mean persistent fire growth in the active drainages. Fire spread is predicted to crest the ridgeline in the Hehe drainage.
The origin of the fire is still being investigated. The USFS is requesting any information, tips, photos, or videos of the area from July 22 when the fire started. Anyone with information is asked to email the U.S. Forest Service’s TIP LINE; people with info can also email the Lane County Sheriff’s office or the Willamette National Forest Supervisor’s Office. The Middle Fork office in Westfir is at 541-782-2283.
By Wednesday afternoon the fire was still at zero containment, with over 200 firefighters assigned. Containment’s estimated for the first week of October.
Firefighters are working on a wildfire that took off when sudden wind gusts fanned a prescribed burn that was considered contained, the U.S. Forest Service reported late Tuesday night. KEZI-TV reported that a prescribed burn was under way near the community of McKenzie Bridge, upstream from Eugene, Oregon, on the McKenzie River, on May 30. Though the prescribed burn was started when weather was within planned parameters, gusty winds started two spot fires near the 65-acre burn area.
The USFS officially declared the escaped burn a wildfire — called the W-470 Fire — and said that as of the morning of May 31 the total burn area was about 120 acres.
Fire crews went out on the night of May 30 to try to contain the fire. The USFS said 34 firefighters worked overnight according to pre-existing contingency plans, and more resources were on the way.
KLCC radio reported that unexpected gusty winds pushed the burn outside the prescribed area. The fire is about two miles northeast of the McKenzie River ranger station in eastern Lane County.
The Willamette National Forest reported that the burn was planned to reduce fuels in a thinned stand, but the escaped fire burned onto National Forest land outside of the burn unit’s perimeter. The burn area is north of Highway 126 where FS Roads 26-204 and 26-206 split near Frissell Trail.
Cooler temperatures are moderating fire activity. “Our highest priority is to suppress fire in the area adjacent to the burn unit,” said Dave Warnack, Willamette Forest Supervisor. Residents of the area who remember the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire are expressing frustration with the USFS for allowing the prescribed burn to escape.
Firefighters in Oregon are on the lookout for thieves who stole investigation gear and evidence from a Lebanon Fire District trailer parked at a fire station about 90 miles north in Fairview, Oregon.
Lebanon, Oregon fire equipment trailer
KOIN-TV reported that thieves broke into the trailer and stole thousands of dollars’ worth of investigative equipment.
Firefighters said they discovered the break-in on Monday at Station 33 in Fairview; thieves had cut through a new security fence on the back of the property, cut the locks on the Lebanon Fire Investigation Team trailer, and stolen fire investigation tools including lights and cameras.
“Thefts such as these are extremely frustrating,” said Fire Marshal Ken Foster. “Having to replace all our investigation equipment may delay any pending or future fire investigations and has a direct effect on our community.” The Lebanon Fire District is asking for help; anyone with information should contact the Linn County Sheriff’s Office at 541-967-3950 and refer to case number 23-02101.
Fire season is already under way in Oregon, with some small fires burning in the southwest part of the state, and state and federal officials are talking about options for funding firefighting efforts.
On May 17, Governor Tina Kotek announced she was adding over $200 million in funding for the state’s wildfire protection system to her budget request to the state legislature. “We need to continue to support things that have worked,” Kotek said in a press conference covered by KEZI-TV. “We need another $207 million to continue our advancements in wildfire protection, in both resilience and protection and response, and I would hope legislators would support that.”
Oregon Dept. Forestry
In Washington, D.C., Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden are working on legislation to create national recreation areas across the state. That distinction would require wildfire prevention strategies in the region. “The bill requires the Bureau of Land Management to take preemptive steps to reduce wildfire risks in the new recreation areas,” Wyden said at a Senate committee hearing, “including the construction of new roads to implement fire risk reduction plans and for public safety.”
Fire departments and districts have also received additional funding for firefighters, engines, and risk reduction programs. Much of that funding comes from 2021’s Senate Bill 762.
“Senate Bill 762 was a major investment in in fighting wildfire in Oregon, and it was a huge help for not only the Oregon Department of Forestry but other wildfire agencies in the state,” said Jessica Prakke, PAO with the Oregon Department of Forestry. The legislation provided $220 million to agencies to modernize and improve wildfire preparedness, response, and resiliency. “It was a huge investment in protecting Oregon from wildfire and it has done an immense amount of good across the state,” she said.
She said the funding also expanded the state’s network of wildfire detection cameras. One such camera caught a fire caused by a lightning strike in Lane County. On the night of May 15 a camera alerted ODF staff to smoke in between Sharps Creek and Mosby. A staffer monitoring the cameras dispatched fire crews to the site, and they had the fire under control within three hours. Prakke said there are now nearly 100 cameras at 60 sites across the state. The system also uses a mapping system to help pinpoint smokes for dispatchers and first responders.
Prevention is the key for a successful season, said Prakke. “The best way to stop wildfire is for people to keep wildfire prevention at the top of their mind,” she said. “About 70 percent of all wildfire in Oregon is human-caused, and so the less that we can contribute to wildfire on our parts, the less our resources are strained to fight other causes of wildfire.”
Airmen from the 173rd Fighter Wing recently spent five days of wildland fire training with the Oregon Department of Forestry in preparation for their role in assisting with the 2023 fire season.
Air National Guard Magazine featured a story about ODF firefighters lighting a controlled blaze during training for the 173rd Fighter Wing Airmen at Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls, Oregon.
(U.S. Air National Guard photo by Airman 1st Class Adriana Scott)
“We are tasked with training Guardsmen on Operations Plan Smokey,” said Jake Barnett, protection supervisor for ODF. He said this initial training consists of 32 hours of in-class and hands-on instruction. Airmen are ready to assist the state of Oregon if called up during emergencies and natural disasters. Operation Plan Smokey provides extra resources to the state from the National Guard via an interagency agreement between the Oregon Military Department and the ODF. Training covered fire behavior, tool use, and communications. The last day included a burn in sagebrush and tall grass. Oregon red-carded 20 new firefighters for the state, and Col. Lee Bouma, 173rd FW commander, said they trained an extra three crews this year.
Extreme fire behavior and gusty winds have pushed the fire to rapid growth, and mixed ownership of private and federal lands coupled with old fire scars means a checkerboard of fuel types. Mixed age classes of timber from slash and young managed stands to late seral stage timber are spread across the landscape, with light dry lichen moss draped in the canopies, exacerbating spotting. Steep slopes in the area have encouraged uphill runs, so the fire gets established in crowns and makes for spotting up to ¾ mile from the fire’s edge.
