Klamath National Forest sees three rounds of thunderstorms in 72 hours; evacuation noticed lifted for McDonald Fire southwest of Mount Ashland

Ashland.news staff report

The Level 1 “be ready” evacuation notice for the JAC-448 zone southwest of Mount Ashland has been cancelled “due to successful firefighting efforts,” according to an alert issued by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday morning. The fire, discovered Monday morning, was declared 100% contained after burning about 5 acres. Hikers were briefly cautioned to not use the nearby Pacific Crest Trail.

Meanwhile, smoke from fires in surrounding areas, including the Dillon Fire in Siskiyou County in Northern California and the Emigrant Fire in Lane County, has the potential to impact air quality in Jackson County for brief periods, according to a Wednesday, Aug. 27, news release from the Jackson County Health Department.

Depending on weather factors, including the direction of the wind and how much smoke the fires are emitting, the smoke levels can quickly rise and fall, the news release noted.

“It is important for people to be aware and prepared for when wildfire smoke moves into the valley during wildfire season. Wildfire smoke can move in quickly and dissipate just as quickly, or linger for longer periods. Sometimes, it feels like it comes out of nowhere,” states Tanya Phillips, health promotion and preparedness manager with Jackson County Public Health.

Oregon Department of Forestry

Thunderstorms continued to rumble through Southern Oregon on Tuesday afternoon and evening, resulting in 33 new lightning strikes on land protected by the Oregon Department of Forestry, according to a post on the ODF Facebook page.

A majority of the reports turned out to be “drift smoke” from fires further north or harmless steam from rain-soaked ground coming into the valley. Nonetheless, fire crews responded to four new blazes, all of which have now been contained or extinguished.

U.S. Forest Service – Klamath National Forest

In a late afternoon Facebook post on Wednesday, Aug. 27, the U.S. National Forest Service noted that the Klamath National Forest has had three rounds of thunderstorms in three days.

Fire activity increased significantly on Wednesday, prompting crews to respond aggressively from air and ground.

The most active blaze, the Blue Fire, is burning in heavy brush and snags near Blue Mountain, about four miles south of Seiad. It has grown to about 5 acres and is showing active spotting behavior. Helicopters and single-engine air tankers are currently working to slow its spread.

Also flaring up are the Murphy, Garden, and Log Fires:

• The Murphy Fire, located near Murphy Rock, more than two miles southeast of Black Bear, is roughly three acres. Helicopters are assisting ground crews after short-range spotting was observed today.
• The Garden Fire, near Yellowjacket Ridge above Kanaka Gulch, is also around 5 acres. Burning snags are hampering containment efforts, but air tankers and firefighters are working to hold the line.
• The Log Fire is burning in remote terrain in the Marble Mountain Wilderness, northwest of English Peak. Air tankers dropped retardant directly along the fire’s edge, supported by helicopter water drops.

Additional uncontained fires include the Bravo Fire, a large burning snag near the Blue Fire. The O’Neil Fire, burning on a quarter acre, southeast of Seiad and the Long John Fire, also about a quarter acre in size, southwest of Grouse Gap.

The remaining 24 fires are contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Email Ashland.news associate editor Steve Mitchell at [email protected].