DAYVILLE — Evacuation zones around the fast-moving Rail Ridge Fire have expanded again, the Grant County Emergency Management Office announced shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 5.

The fire, burning about 7 miles south of Dayville in the South Fork John Day River drainage, has grown to more than 83,000 acres since it was sparked by lightning on Monday.

On the fire’s southeastern front, the Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation notice now extends to Forest Service Road 24 from the South Fork John Day in the west to the south fork of Murderers Creek in the east.

On the south, the Level 3 “Go Now” zone runs along the west side of the South Fork south to the Izee-Paulina Highway and west from there to the Crook County line.

On the northern part of the fire, the Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation zone runs from the Wheeler County line east along Johnson Creek to the South Fork Road, then continues further east along Smoky Creek. It curves southeast along FSR 2150 before cutting south and continuing along FSR 2490 and 2480 down to FSR 2180, which runs southwest to the 24 road.

The Level 2 “Be Set” evacuation alert has been extended on the fire’s southern front as far south as Indian Creek in the west and the south fork of Murderers Creek in the east. The Level 2 zone continues north along Fields Creek Road to Wickiup Creek.

An additional Level 2 “Be Set” evacuation alert is in place on the north side of the fire. That zone includes the town of Dayville and runs along Highway 26, starting at the Wheeler County line and running east to Flat Creek. It includes the area north of Johnson Creek and Smoky Creek.

A Level 1 “Be Ready” evacuation zone extends south of the fire as far as the Izee-Paulina Highway and Swamp Creek Lane, from the Crook County line in the west to FSR 21 in the east. 

On the north, a second Level 1 zone runs from Highway 26 in the north to FSR 2150 in the south, and extends from Flat Creek in the west to Wickiup Creek and Fields Creek Road in the east.

“Today the fire’s been creeping south, basically, on the east side of the South Fork,” said Eric Bush, Grant County’s emergency management coordinator.

“That’s what precipitated the expansion of the Level 3 and Level 2 zones.”

For the latest evacuation zone information, check the active GIS map at https://geo.maps.arcgis.com/apps/PublicInformation/index.html?appid=f8a0d8814a67445a9e6bf3485f4fd24f or visit the Grant County Emergency Management Office Facebook page.