Single Publication

CURRENT SITUATION: Yesterday, a change in weather conditions helped to reduce the fire activity. The fire is burning in an old-growth and mature forest with no recent history of fire and is located in steep, rugged, and inaccessible terrain. Crews have begun improving and opening existing forest and overgrown roads, which will help prevent the fire from spreading towards the Middle Santiam Wilderness, private industrial timberlands, and nearby communities. Today, control efforts will focus on using heavy equipment to open and improve the 2041 Road (Bridge to Nowhere trail) and the forest road near Shedd Camp.

WEATHER: The Red Flag Warning expired yesterday, and near-normal temperatures and humidity are forecast for the rest of the week as onshore flow pushes cooler marine air inland. Humidity levels are expected to improve overnight.

CLOSURES: On July 19th, the Willamette National Forest issued an emergency closure order for the Pyramid Fire for public and Firefighter safety. Read the complete Forest Order closing the area at https://www.fs.usda.gov/.../FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1194122.pdf 

EVACUATIONS: On July 17th, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, in coordination with the Forest, issued a level 3: Go Now Evacuation Alert for the closure area affected. Sheriff Duncan wants everyone to know that the large evacuation area is necessary to give wildfire response teams enough space to travel and fight the fire safely. The fire itself is much smaller than the evacuation area. No residential structures are in jeopardy of the fire. This LEVEL 3: GO NOW! Evacuation Alert is primarily impacting forest and recreation areas.  Please refer to the Linn County Fire Map https://tinyurl.com/LinnCoFireMap for full details of the issued evacuation area (which will appear in red). Follow the Linn County Sheriff’s Office on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LinnSheriff 

FIRE RESTRICTIONS: Effective July 17, 2024, fire restrictions apply to all lands within the Willamette National Forest, including the Three Sisters, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Waldo Lake, and Diamond Peak Wilderness areas. Read the full restriction at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/willamette/alerts-notices/?aid=81487