The Taylor Creek Fire as of late Friday night sits at 33,600 acres with 34% containment. 1,154 Firefighters consisting of 32 crews and 65 engines evaluated the area north of Taylor Gorge Overlook Thursday, weighing a potential firing operation.
The fires have spotted in many remote areas in between the two blazes, bringing concerns the Taylor Creek fire on the south and the Klondike fire on the north are slowly working towards each other. Officials have conducted controlled back burns to create a burned out fire line to keep the fires now burning under 3 miles from Selma from actually meeting.
Taylor Creek Fire is steadily backing toward Bear Camp Road and Galice Creek drainage, where an Oregon State Fire Marshal structure group is in place to protect homes. A spot fire near China Hat Trailhead Thursday sent visible smoke skyward, eliciting helicopter response, delivering buckets of water to slow the rate of spread.
In response to increased fire behavior with short runs and spotting, firefighting actions have amplified on the fire’s northwest flank. Accordingly, Josephine County Sheriff’s Office announced the closure of the Bear Camp Road system, effective 8 am Friday. Helicopter work continues today as firefighters prep Bear Camp Road for firing and to withstand the advancing fire.
Firefighters mopped up along the Rogue River Thursday to further reinforce an increasingly secure margin between the fire and homes in the Hog Creek and Picket Creek areas. Thursday night, Josephine County Sheriff’s Office announced that evacuation levels for Hog Creek and Picket Creek areas were downgraded. .
Engines continue to patrol Limpy Creek and Shan Creek areas as crews progress on mop-up, further strengthening control lines.
Temperatures have moderated by 5-7 degrees, with increased moisture. Breezy conditions persist, driving smoke away from the fire, particularly as a morning inversion lifts. Anticipate near normal temperatures and humidity this weekend, with northwest winds in the afternoon and evening. Next week, a hotter and drier trend emerges.
The Klondike Fire:
The Klondike Fire has reached 23,500 acres and crews have reached only 5% containment. Fire crews continued structure protection in Briggs Valley north of the fire while improving the indirect control line from Forest Road 25 south along the dozer line to Illinois River Road to prepare for planned burnout operations.
In response to easterly fire spread which threatened primary fire lines near Selma, firefighters initiated low intensity burnouts along the dozer line working to just north of Squaw Mountain and south to West Fork Squaw Creek. Engine crews patrolled Josephine County Oak Flat and continued to run pumps and sprinklers around structures. Structure protection and line preparation south of the fire continued as well.
Crews will continue to use low intensity burnouts to remove vegetation along the primary containment line east of the fire, holding the line to the south and continuing burnout operations north towards Serpentine Point as conditions allow.
With most of the line preparation complete, crews will be focused on supporting those burnout operations to the east, as well as continuing structure protection in Briggs Valley to the north and along the Illinois River to the south.
Crews will continue to patrol Josephine Co. and Oak Flat. Smoke from burnout operations will likely be visible and air resources will continue to be utilized as visibility allows.
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