Fire danger, which dropped to moderate on August 19, will rise back to high on Thursday, August 29, according to the Oregon Department of Forestry.
“Warm dry weather has returned for the holiday weekend. Fuels are drying out,” ODF Forest Grove District Forester Mike Cafferata said in an email. He noted that humidity would be in the low 20s starting Thursday.
Fire danger in lands protected by the Oregon Department of Forestry in the Northwest Oregon Forest Protective Association (NWOFPA) will be set to “high,” or yellow, at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
Fire danger levels had previously been at “high” since July 10. Industrial users will see Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPL) set to the following:
NW-1: IFPL 1
NW-2: IFPL 2
NW-3: IFPL 2
The NWOFPA region includes areas such as Gales Creek, Buxton, Timber, Manning, and the Tillamook State Forest. It stretches north to the Columbia River, west to the Pacific Ocean, south to Sheridan, and east to parts of Gales Creek, the Killin Wetlands outside Banks, and Scappoose.
The public and industrial users can stay informed of current fire restrictions by visiting the agency’s Fire Restrictions & Closures website or calling the Forest Grove ODF office at 503-357-2191.
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.
