A three-acre wildfire near Timber is under control, Banks Fire District 13 said in a social media post.
According to Banks Fire Public Information Officer Scott Adams, the fire is located in the area of NW Cochran Road and Wheeler Road, an area just west of Timber near Reehers Camp.
“A strong attack by fire crews from Banks Fire and neighboring agencies has the fire under control,” Adams said.
Adams said that no homes or livestock were threatened, and that the agency didn’t anticipate issuing any evacuation orders.
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“We may be into fall but please remember, fire danger is still HIGH,” Adams noted.
In a message to the Banks Post, Banks Fire PIO Mitch Ward said that there was no information on what caused the fire yet. Ward said the fire was last reported to be three acres around 4:45 p.m.
In an email sent Friday morning by Oregon Department of Forestry Forest Grove District Forester Mike Cafferata, the forester acknowledged that while cooler temperatures are starting to arrive with the onset of autumn, fire danger remains high.
“We continue to have a number of fires caused by public use – both debris burning and now a few campfires that appear to be hunter related,” Cafferata wrote. “While the threat of large fires is greatly reduced, fire remains a hazard that can be dangerous for firefighters and expensive to control. Please help everyone realize we are not quite through fire season yet. We are just waiting on a few rainstorms that should arriving any week,” he said.
Early Friday morning, Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPL) in the region dropped to the lowest level, IFPL 1.
More information on current fire restrictions for the general public and industrial forest users can be found online.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
Chas Hundley is the editor of the Banks Post and sister news publications the Gales Creek Journal and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.