Firefighters respond to multiple starts

Published 10:43 am Tuesday, August 4, 2020

Firefighters have been busy over the last week, responding to multiple wildfires.

Fire crews worked over the weekend to to contain the 100-acre Buck Butte Fire north of Burns, according to a press release from the Malheur National Forest.

Resources on the scene included six fire engines with 60 wildland firefighters and a helicopter crew. Crews will continue to patrol the area.

With the Matlock Fire north of Ukiah 95% contained, firefighting operations are winding down and the Northeast Oregon Interagency Type 3 Incident Management Team is preparing to hand the fire back to the Umatilla National Forest, according to a press release from the Umatilla National Forest.

Incident Commander Shane Severs and the North Fork John Day Ranger District took command of remaining resources Tuesday to complete containment and restore the landscape.

Firefighters focused Monday on thorough mop-up and patrol of remaining hot spots. Other crews and equipment worked to rehabilitate and repair control lines that are no longer needed to contain the fire.

Firefighting resources assigned include one Interagency Hotshot Crew, one Type 2IA handcrew, seven Type 6 engines, three water tenders, one log loader, and one processor.

Crews continued to battle the Day Basin Fire south of Dayville, last reported at 41 acres.

The John Day Interagency Dispatch Center reported Monday that resources contained a small fire, Elk Creek. The main source of fuel was the burning of a log, the dispatch center reported.

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