For the 2019 fire year, the Central Oregon Fire Management Services (COFMS) and the Oregon Department of Forestry (Central Oregon District) experienced 289 wildland fires (both human and lightning-caused) for a total of 1,047 acres as of September 8, 2019. Local government fire departments have similar reduced wildland fire numbers and acres. Although the total number of fires and acreage is significantly less than average there are compelling reasons.
- A cool and moist spring resulted in a late start to the 2019 fire year.
- All lightning events produced adequate moisture, thus reducing fire danger.
- Other agencies in Oregon and throughout the west have experienced similar weather and lightning events, making adequate available resources for response, thus the reduced acres; during the past several years the combination of weather factors and unavailability of resources resulted in significantly more acres and weeks of smoke in Central OR.
- A sophisticated interagency response (all agencies) resulted in both the closest resources and the right type and amount of resources for the wildland fire.
- Any integrated response for wildland fire would not be complete without an effective coordination system (dispatch) and logistical support from the fire cache system.
While successfully responding to approximately 300 fires, COFMS simultaneously wisely chose to used a confinement/containment strategy for the Pacific Fire in the Mt. Washington Wilderness, using a Fire Use Module because the Pacific Fire was burning at a high elevation, late in the fire year and surrounded by previous burn scars and lava flows.
This type of integrated wildland fire response doesn’t occur without leadership by the Forest Supervisors, ODF District Foresters, BLM District Managers, and fire program leadership by COFMS.
This type of integrated wildland fire response doesn’t occur without well-informed publics and the continued evolution of “living with wildland fire.”
The National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy has the following Vision Statement for the next century: “To safely and effectively extinguish fire, when needed; use fire where allowable; manage our natural resources; and as a Nation, live with wildland fire. “
One of the Strategic Goals of the Cohesive Strategy is: Wildfire response: All jurisdictions participate in making and implementing safe, effective, efficient risk-based wildfire management decisions.
