Fire season is officially underway in The Dalles Unit of the Oregon Department of Forestry. It began Monday morning on all lands protected by State Forestry in Hood River and Wasco counties. That means all industrial operations on forest land are required to have fire tools, water supply, and fire extinguishers on site, and a new law enacted this year bans the use of exploding targets, tracer ammunition, and sky lanterns on State Forestry protected lands. A burn ban begins July 1. Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue has placed a partial burn restriction in place, with all outdoor burning prohibited until further notice, with the use of burn barrels outside of The Dalles city limits allowed until conditions warrant a full ban. Crews were dealing with two fires near Washington Highway 14 on Monday, one a brush fire eight miles east of Bingen that disrupted traffic for a time, and another burned about two-and-a-half acres near Dog Creek about five miles west of Bingen.