Scattered thunderstorms and gusty winds in southeast Wasco County early Wednesday morning only minimally impacted the Larch Creek Fire area. Night crews improved containment and mop-up activities continue to expand, while fire personnel remain on stand-by to monitor for any starts caused by lightning strikes. Containment is at 27% for the 18,690 acre fire. The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office lifted all remaining Level 3 evacuation advisories on Wednesday evening, going down to Level 2. There were other reductions, with all previous Level 1 advisories lifted. Detailed evacuation information is available on the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page. The Pine Hollow Reservoir reopened to recreation on Wednesday afternoon.
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Lone Rock Fire At 10% Containment
The Lone Rock Fire ten miles southeast of Condon has grown to 69,354 acres, but containment has moved up to 10%. Northwest Management Team 2 and the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office went into a unified command of the fire this morning. Fire officials say additional resources continue to arrive to support the suppression efforts. Wildland fire crews continue to patrol and secure firelines on the northwest portion of the fire; however, crews continue to find heat along the northeastern and southern edges of the fire. Structure protection in the community of Lonerock continues to be a priority, and OSFM task forces are also conducting structure assessment and protection efforts beyond the fire’s edge in the surrounding communities of Hardman and Lefevre Prairie. Firefighters will continue to work through the night providing structure protection and suppression efforts throughout the fire – with increased resources in the southeast where the fire is most active.
URA Board To Seek Interest For Development Of Tony’s Lot
The Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency board has authorized going out for Requests for Expressions on Interest for developing the former Tony’s Town and Country property on East 2nd in downtown The Dalles. That’s after a community survey showed interest in a number of different possibilities for the property, including commercial or residential development and community open space in conjunction with the City’s planned Federal Street plaza. City Economic Development Officer Dan Spatz says an RFEI differs from the usual Request for Proposal in not requiring full-blown architectural and engineering documents, but still requires a structured response. URA Board Chair Darcy Long says they will put heavier weight on fully developed concepts with details on how they would be achieved.
Wasco County Commission Approves Zoning Map & NSA Amendments
Wasco County Commissioners approved amendments to both the County’s comprehensive plan zoning map and National Scenic Area ordinance. Many of the changes are housekeeping items, and to bring the County into compliance with the NSA Management Plan and Federal Emergency Management Administration flood plain rules developed in 2020. Wasco County Long-Range Planner Alice Cannon says the flood plain changes are important to qualify for the national insurance program for properties in the flood plain. The NSA ordinance changes have to go to the Columbia River Gorge Commission and eventually the Secretary of Agriculture’s office for approval.
White Salmon Schools To Have Building Condition Assessment
White Salmon Valley School District Superintendent Rich Polkinghorn met with members of the Southwest Washington ESD 112 Construction Services Group this week to begin preliminary work on facilities planning. Polkinghorn says the first step will be to have a Building Condition Assessment done. Polkinghorn says there is an opportunity for the district to apply for a Small Schools Modernization grant from the state. He says they district could be eligible for up to $12 million, but they need to get the assessment done before they apply for the grant.
Program Helps Feed Farmworkers During Harvest Season
A program in the Columbia River Gorge helps migrant farmworkers’ families during harvest season. The Resources Available for Migrant Access to Services, or RAMAS group, is led by the Oregon Child Development Coalition in Hood River and Wasco Counties. It provides support during a four-week period of peak harvest time, including food boxes to families. Leah Hall with Columbia Gorge Food Bank in The Dalles says migrant workers follow the harvest and often bring their families with them. Hall says they also help migrant farmworkers and families receives education, nutrition, health, social services, mental health and disabilities, and family engagement education services. She adds the group works with orchardists and farm owners in the region to determine when workers are expected to arrive.
Songer Recovering After Stroke Symptoms
Klickitat County Sheriff Bob Songer was taken to a hospital on Friday with stroke symptoms. According to a statement issued by Undersheriff Carmen Knopes on Tuesday, Songer was taken to Klickitat Valley Health in Goldendale and then transported to a Portland hospital for further treatment and evaluation. Knopes says Songer has been walking around, eating, and drinking coffee, and is ready to come home. She added Songer is likely to be released from the hospital within the next few days.
Larch Creek Fire Containment Now 27%
Containment on the Larch Creek Fire in Wasco County moved up to 27% Tuesday evening…and officials reported the fire perimeter is now fully lined. In the most active section of the fire, the Southwest edge, crews have mopped up 25 feet inwards from the fireline. In other areas of the fire, mop-up has pushed in over 100 feet, creating a stronger gap between the fire’s footprint and unburned fuels. Firefighters went into the night watching for potential dry thunderstorms that were forecast into this morning and could bring gusty winds to test fireline. One of the primary hazards for fire personnel are standing dead trees which may be weakened and fall or ignite and cast sparks into unburned fuel outside the fire perimeter. Structural task forces were being demobilized Tuesday, and crews continue patrolling around structures that remain in areas under evacuation. The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office did lower some evacuation levels Tuesday evening and will reassess them again today. Pine Hollow Reservoir remains closed to recreation. Detailed evacuation information is available on the Wasco County Facebook page.
Lone Rock Fire Up To 71,000 Acres
Size of the Lone Rock Fire ten miles southeast of Condon has moved up to 71,000 acres, and containment is now at 10%. The Gilliam County Sheriff’s Office says active fire is to the southwest and southeast of Lonerock. Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act on Tuesday. The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Red Incident Management Team joined a unified command with Northwest Team 2. Structural task forces from Benton, Clackamas, Lane, Linn, Marion, Multnomah, and Yamhill counties are assigned to the fire. The Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch Center says fire crews will continue to build on prior suppression efforts, The Gilliam County Sheriff’s Office says the Oregon Department of Forestry, and the Oregon State Fire Marshal Office had fire investigators on scene Tuesday conducting an investigation as to how and why this fire started..
White Salmon & DNR Get Ready To Clear Fire Fuels From Bluff
The City of White Salmon and the Washington Department of Natural Resources have acquired a contractor to do clearing of fire fuels on the Bluff. Mayor Marla Keethler says federal funding delays led to the project to be pushed back from this past fall to sometime this summer. But she points out they have to wait for some cooler weather to do the work, so it may not happen until the late summer or early fall. She adds this is the first phase of a complete fuel break around the White Salmon city limits that can help defend the community from wildfire.