Deception Complex Fire Information Update

Deception Complex

Fire Information Update

http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4093/           https://www.facebook.com/DeceptionComplex

https://twitter.com/DeceptionORFire                             http://deceptioncomplex.blogspot.com/

Gmail account has changed to: DeceptionComplex@gmail.com

Sunday, August 31, 2014

Fire	Acres	% Contained	Total Personnel
Deception Complex	2218	55	980

News & Highlights for the Deception Complex      Fire Information Line: 541.782.5359

·         Pacific Northwest Team 2 (Chris Schulte) and the Oregon Department of Forestry (Ross Holloway) took over management of the Deception Complex at 6:00 a.m. this morning under Unified Command.

·         The Willamette National Forest and Oregon Department of Forestry initial attack firefighting resources did an excellent job in suppressing approximately 90 fire starts associated with lightning activity in July and August.  The Deception Complex represents only a very few of the numerous fires that firefighters successfully suppressed. If you get a chance, please thank your local firefighters for their hard work.

·         The remote weather station located near the Deception Fire recorded 1/4” of rain received yesterday. The fire area received 100% humidity recovery overnight.  A gradual warming trend is starting today through Tuesday. By Thursday, weather is predicted to return to a very warm and dry pattern.

·         Air quality is expected to be moderate today due to a clearing of smoke associated with the precipitation received.

·         Deception Creek Mobile Home Park, Middle Fork Ranger Station and houses along La Duke Road remain under a Level 1 evacuation notice.

·         Road and area closures are in affect; see below. The Waldo Lake Wilderness Area closure on the Willamette National Forest has been lifted.

Deception Complex Operations Summary:

Today on the NE flank, hotshot crews, engines and heavy equipment will continue work on contingency lines and mop up activities. On the E flank, hand crews will improve fireline, and prep for burnout if necessary, along the 5850 Road. On the W flank, crews and heavy equipment are holding and improving line south to the junction of the 1740/1790 Roads. On the N flank, crews and engines are improving hand and dozer line into Deception Creek off the 547 spur road.

On the Pool and Davey Fires, crews and engines are continuing with rehab on dozer lines, mop up activities, (utilizing infrared devices (palm IR) for heat detection purposes), and patrol.  The greatest concentration of heat is along the N flank of the fire; however, helicopters have been making good progress cooling this area utilizing water bucket drops, and a heavy duty sprinkler system is also in place.

On the Staley Fire, engines, crews and heavy equipment continue to monitor fire activity along the upper ridge, prep contingency lines along the 335 Road, and patrol, mop up and secure perimeter utilizing palm IR from the 332 Road down to and along the 300 Road.

Air Operations Summary

Currently, four heavy helicopters, three light helicopters and two air attack platforms are assigned to the Deception Complex.  Last night’s infrared flight was cancelled due to cloud cover.

FIRE FACTS:

• A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is in place over the Deception Fires 272, 274 and 278; a military training Route (R346) has been closed due to the TFR.

Oakridge Airport

• Closed to civilian air traffic; currently serving as the helibase for the Deception Complex

Willamette National Forest Area & Trail Closures:

• There are two closures on the Willamette NF association with the Deception Complex and the Staley Fire.  The Deception Complex closure is an area, road and trail closure that includes the Lawler, Deception and Larison Rock Trails.  The Staley Fire closure is an area and road closure. 

Umpqua National Forest Closure:

• There is an area, road and trail closure adjacent to the Deception Creek drainage and SW of the Deception Complex.

Check Inciweb for full closure information, including maps: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4093/ or visit the Willamette National Forest at http://www.fs.usda.gov/WILLAMETTE or the Umpqua National Forest website.

                                                                                                                       

Deception Complex: Started: August 12, 2014 Cause: Lightning Location: Two miles west of Oakridge, Oregon.

           

SAFETY CONCERNS: Slick surfaces, increased traffic along Highway 58 associated with the holiday, recreationists nearby, large hazardous snags, steep, rocky terrain and rolling debris.

RESOURCE CONCERNS: Threatened and endangered species, including northern spotted owls and bull trout; timber resources, impacts to recreation opportunities, threatened communities of Oakridge and Westfir, municipal watershed of Westfir.

WEATHER: Expect slightly warmer temperatures today along with lower humidity levels and clearing skies.  Winds will generally be out of the NW. W to E oriented drainages will experience occasional NW gusts to 12 mph after 12 noon. Today’s temperatures will range from lower to mid 70s with relative humidities lower to mid 40s.

TODAY’S EXPECTED FIRE BEHAVIOR: Minimal due to precipitation received, today is a good day for firefighters to make progress with mop up activities in the heavy fuels. Heavier fuel concentrations are still dry enough to completely consume.  Steep slopes will continue the threat of “roullouts”. Isolated torching is possible if surface fuels have pre-heated under the canopy.  Overall fire behavior will primarily be creeping and smoldering.

COOPERATING AGENCIES & PARTNERS: Willamette National Forest, Oregon Department of Forestry, Umpqua National Forest, Lane County, Oakridge/Hazeldell Fire Department, Oregon Department of Transportation, Oregon State Police, Bureau of Reclamation, Lane Regional Air Protection Agency.

-END-

Air Quality Report and Outlook for 8/31/14

The Deception fire had minimal growth yesterday due to light rain conditions.  Overnight, the more stable conditions trapped emissions at the elevation of the fire. These emissions will drop into the valley early this morning before clearing out in the afternoon increased north winds. We forecast the air quality in Oakridge and Westfir to reach Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups in the morning but we anticipate the afternoon conditions to improve to the Moderate range. On Monday, northeast winds that should continue to push the majority of smoke to the South away from Oakridge and Westfir.

Deception Complex Smoke Report (prepared by John Cook and Tod Johnson, Air Resource Advisors)­­­­­

Air Quality Outlook (Particulate Matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter)

Site	Sunday Morning forecast Aug 31, 2014	Sunday Afternoon forecast Aug 31, 2014	Sunday Evening forecast Aug 31, 2014
Oakridge	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Moderate	Moderate
Westfir	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Moderate	Moderate
Hills Creek Lake Area	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Moderate	Moderate

AQI Index (µg/m3)	Potential Health Impacts	Actions to Protect Yourself
Good (0-12)	Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no health risk.	None
Moderate (13-35)	Air quality is acceptable for most. There may be moderate health concern for a small number of sensitive people.	Unusually sensitive people should consider reducing prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (36-55)	Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected.	People with heart or lung disease, children and older adults should reduce prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion.  Everyone else should limit prolonged or heavy exertion.
Unhealthy (56-150)	Everyone may begin to experience more serious health effects.	The following groups should avoid all physical outdoor activity: People with heart or lung disease, children and older adults.  Everyone else should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion.
Very Unhealthy (151-250)	Triggers a health alert, meaning everyone may experience more serious health effects	Everyone should avoid any outdoor exertion; people with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly and children should remain indoors.

For more information see the Oregon Smoke blog: http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com

Air Quality data can be viewed at: http://www.deq.state.or.us/aqi/index.aspx

Evacuation Level is lowered on the Deception Complex

Deception Complex Lowers Evacuation Levels to 1.

The areas (previously in Level 2) of Deception Creek Mobile Park, Middle Fork Ranger District and residents along LaDuke Rd. have been lowered to Level 1.  

This means Level I (“BE READY” for a potential evacuation):  Residents should be aware of the danger that exists in their area, monitor emergency services websites and local media outlets for information.  This is the time for preparation and precautionary movement of persons with special needs, mobile property and (under certain circumstances) pets and livestock.  If conditions worsen, emergency services personnel may contact you via an emergency notification system.

Air Quality Report and Outlook

Air Quality Report and Outlook for 8/30/14

The deception fire grew 149 acres yesterday as a result of interior burning and burn out operations to strengthen perimeter control lines.  Smoke from the majority of this increase vented to the southeast in the late afternoon and evening with valleys winds blowing out of the west. Overnight, the more stable conditions trapped emissions at the elevation of the fire. These emissions will drop into the valley late this morning peaking before noon and then clearing as a result of increased west winds this afternoon. We forecast the air quality in Oakridge and Westfir to reach Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups near noon for a short period before west valley winds will clear the area of the majority of pollutants. We anticipate the afternoon conditions in Westfir and Oakridge to improve to the Moderate range. On Sunday, another frontal system will result in north winds that should push the majority of smoke to the South.

Deception Complex Smoke Report (prepared by John Cook and Tod Johnson, Air Resource Advisors)­­­­­

Air Quality Outlook (Particulate Matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter)

Site	Saturday Morning forecast Aug 30, 2014	Saturday Afternoon forecast Aug 30, 2014	Saturday Evening forecast Aug 30, 2014
Oakridge	Moderate	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Moderate
Westfir	Moderate	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Moderate
Hills Creek Lake Area	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

AQI Index (µg/m3)	Potential Health Impacts	Actions to Protect Yourself
Good (0-12)	Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no health risk.	None
Moderate (13-35)	Air quality is acceptable for most. There may be moderate health concern for a small number of sensitive people.	Unusually sensitive people should consider reducing prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (36-55)	Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected.	People with heart or lung disease, children and older adults should reduce prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion.  Everyone else should limit prolonged or heavy exertion.
Unhealthy (56-150)	Everyone may begin to experience more serious health effects.	The following groups should avoid all physical outdoor activity: People with heart or lung disease, children and older adults.  Everyone else should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion.
Very Unhealthy (151-250)	Triggers a health alert, meaning everyone may experience more serious health effects	Everyone should avoid any outdoor exertion; people with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly and children should remain indoors.

For more information see the Oregon Smoke blog: http://oregonsmoke.blogspot.com

Air Quality data can be viewed at: http://www.deq.state.or.us/aqi/index.aspx

Deception Complex Fire Update

Deception Complex Fire Update - August 30, 2014

The Deception Complex consists of many fires ignited by lightning since mid-July. The largest fire within the complex is the Deception Creek Fire, which has grown to 1916 acres. The sum of the sizes of all the fires within the complex is 2196 acres. A number of fires which were previously included within the complex have now been turned back to the Middle Fork District for patrol and rehabilitation, and are no longer included in the acreage calculation.

The Deception Creek Fire was buffeted by winds of up to 19 miles per hour from westerly directions on Friday afternoon. The wind caused the fire to burn more actively near the ridge tops, but the lines held and the fire did not advance to the east. Overall growth of the Deception Creek Fire was 149 acres, mostly to the southwest. Firefighters were able to accomplish some mop-up along the hand lines at the northern end of the fire.

Similar weather conditions are expected on Saturday, with temperatures reaching the lower 70’s. Some showers, however, are in the forecast, possibly arriving as early as 1:00 p.m. No more than a few hundredths of an inch are expected, but the intermittent showers may last through the night. This precipitation is expected to put a damper on fire activity, such as fire spreading through grass or brush, but the rain is not expected to penetrate the forest canopy, so most burning fuels will retain their heat.

Oakridge air quality again reached the “unhealthy” level for a short period of time on Friday, but was quickly cleaned out by the early afternoon wind. Continued smoky conditions can be expected, though forecasters are predicting that it will be at the “moderate” level on Saturday. The air-conditioned, smoke-free room at the Willamette Activity Center will open this weekend if requested by any individuals via the fire department, according to Mayor Jerry Shorey.

The Deception Creek Mobile Home Park, the Middle Fork Ranger Station, and houses along La Duke Road remain on Level 2 Evacuation Notice.

Closure Information:

The Oakridge Airport is closed to civilian air traffic because it is being used as a helibase for the fire.

The Willamette National Forest has lifted the closure within the Waldo Lake Wilderness Area. Other Willamette National Forest closures remain unchanged. The Umpqua National Forest has closed an area adjacent to the Deception Creek drainage.  Check Inciweb for full closure information, including maps: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4093/.

Total Acres	% Contained	20-person Crew	Engines	Dozers	Helicopters	Total Personnel
2,196	55%	19	40	4	6 heavy , 2 medium 3 light	922