Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse, more bad news assails us.

In the midst of raging wildfires threatening isolated ranches and small communities in every corner of Grant County came word that Malheur Lumber, the county’s last surviving lumber mill, will be closing permanently.

Things got even worse on Friday, when a missing air tanker was found near Seneca along with the body of the pilot, who crashed while battling the Parasol Fire. Grieving firefighters and law enforcement officers formed a funeral cortege, escorting the body of the fallen comrade to Driskill Memorial Chapel in John Day in a show of ultimate respect for the ultimate sacrifice.

Still, even as the fires continue to rage, stories of hope and courage are beginning to emerge. In Monument, as the Boneyard Fire was bearing down, landowners joined firefighters to build containment lines and hold the flames at bay. You can read Justin Davis’ report on how the town was saved here. And you can read Soo Yukawa’s first-person account of her own family’s evacuation ordeal here. (Spoiler alert: The Yukawas’ ranch and animals are safe.) And if you missed it the first time, you can find my report on conditions during the first week of the Falls Fire here.

Here at the Eagle, we are doing our best to keep up with the rapid-fire pace of updates and alerts from the various agencies responding to these fires. Sometimes we move a little too fast, as when I mistakenly posted a report that the Courtrock Fire had merged with the Boneyard and Monkey Creek blazes. That’s not the case — the Courtyard Fire continues to burn separately south of Monument and west of Long Creek. I’ve taken that mistaken report down and offer my apologies for any confusion I added to an already chaotic situation.

We will continue to post as many of these as we can, as quickly as we can, on our website. Keep an eye on our home page for the latest updates, and click on the wildfires tab in the navigation bar to see all our coverage.

And, as always in these kinds of emergencies, we will keep all of these alerts and updates outside our paywall so that anyone can read them on our site, whether they have a paid subscription or not. 

Keep your family close. Check on your neighbors. And, above all, stay safe.