This year’s wet spring and slow-starting summer delayed the inevitable, but we all knew that couldn’t last: Fire season arrived in Oregon at the beginning of August.

Here in Grant County, the most significant wildfire we’ve seen so far has been the Beech Creek Fire, which started Aug. 1 along both sides of Highway 395 North between Mt. Vernon and Long Creek, burning in brush and timber. But thanks to quick, decisive action by fire management officials – along with some timely assistance from local property owners and mostly moderate weather conditions – the blaze has been held in check.

The initial response included a single-engine air tanker, two additional heavy air tankers and a helitack crew that attacked the fire from the air, while two 20-person fire crews with six engines battled the flames on the ground. Additional ground crews with bulldozers and other heavy equipment were quickly brought into play. In all, more than 200 firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, Oregon Department of Forestry and Grayback Forestry have been on the job over the past eight days, putting containment lines in place and making sure the fire doesn’t escape. As of Monday, Aug. 8, the fire was 69% contained and was confined to 155 acres.

Local law enforcement also leaped into the fray. In the first hours after the fire broke out, officers with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office and Oregon State Police were helping with traffic control and contacting local residents in the fire zone, offering assistance in getting people and livestock to safety. Emergency dispatchers kept the lines of communication open and coordinated efforts between multiple agencies. Crews from Oregon Trail Electric Co-op worked to restore power to the area, and the Oregon Department of Transportation provided flaggers and a pilot car to ensure safe passage through the fire zone for motorists.

We thank all the firefighters and other first responders for their tireless and selfless efforts to keep us all safe.

Eagle reporter Steven Mitchell has been keeping a close eye on the Beech Creek Fire, posting daily updates at www.bluemountaineagle.com as new information becomes available. As with all of our Oregon wildfire coverage, we have placed Steven’s updates outside our website’s paywall so all online visitors, not just paid subscribers, can have access to this vital information. We do the same thing with stories about the COVID-19 pandemic, elections and natural disasters that directly affect Grant County residents.

That’s part of our commitment to our readers. The paywall — which limits how many pageviews nonsubscribers can have on our website each month — is there to encourage casual readers to become paying customers because, frankly, we need the revenue to continue bringing you the news. But in an emergency situation, when immediate access to accurate information is crucial, we will always put our community first.