ODF Southwest Oregon District forester says climate and other factors are ‘getting more complex’; test of Jackson Alert system set for 10 a.m. Thursday

Fire and forestry officials from around the region anticipate a hot and dry 2025 wildfire season but told Jackson County commissioners Tuesday that they’re as prepared as they can be.

Commissioners heard from regional leaders of the Oregon Department of Forestry, Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, the state Fire Defense Board and the Bureau of Land Management on staffing levels, equipment availability and overall preparedness.

Wildfire season is typically declared by ODF based on weather conditions, vegetation dryness and behavior in fires that crop up early in the year. Fire season won’t be declared prior to June 1 but can start early if certain conditions are present.

Dan Quinones, district forester for the ODF Southwest Oregon District, said his agency has been paying close attention to precipitation and temperature forecasts for the coming months, which he said show “equal chances” that precipitation could be above or below normal. Temperatures, however, are forecast to be well above normal for the entire U.S., which Quinones said could “exacerbate any new ignitions we may have, whether they be human or natural starts” and create “resource competition for fires” around the region and beyond.

Quinones said his agency, which he said had not been impacted by federal cuts, was fully staffed and anticipated “stretching our legs a bit” to meet growing needs in the region with climate and other factors “getting more complex.”

Quinones spoke of a recent report by John Saltenberger, fire program manager for the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center, which indicated the coming fire season could mirror that of 2017, which brought more than 1,000 reported wildfires.

Districtwide, ODF resources for Grants Pass and Medford units include 135 seasonal firefighters, dispatchers and detection specialists; type 2 and type 3 helicopters stationed at the Medford airport; a type 1 helicopter in Ashland and type 2 in Grants Pass; two 10-person crews each for Medford and Grants Pass; and two bulldozers and 25 engines split between the two districts.

“I tell my folks we are going to have an August and most likely it will be dirty,” he said.

“There’s really just so many factors involved in a true prediction of what fire season is going to look like.”

Forecast high temperatures are a concern

Jeremy Delack, fire staff officer for the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, spoke of “interesting conditions” with above-normal precipitation and healthy snowpack amid rain showers arriving at “not at the right time,” allowing fire fuels to cure and early fires to crop up.

Delack said forecast high temperatures were a concern.

“The last several years, when we (had) those long-duration heat waves, especially when they started in early June and prolonged for several days at those 100-plus degree temperatures … we’re more or less sitting on completely cured fuels that are just ready for those starts,” Delack said.

“Those are the big things that we’re looking out for, those heat domes … and then typically on the back end … when that high pressure breaks down and you get the lightning events associated with it.”

Delack said his agency, which is responsible for over 1.8 million acres and operates from seven bases around the region, had planned resources for extended heat events. 

Delack, who said his agency was in the process of filling 14 additional permanent positions and anticipated fire season staffing similar to last year, said officials would prioritize “rapid and decisive initial attack” of fires, utilizing out of area or contract resources to ensure “robust response” with “all available resources.”

Delack said it was inevitable there would be opportunities in which best efforts were unsuccessful, “but one thing we’re dedicated to ensuring is that that will not be from a lack of response or (lack of) resources going to those fires.”

Regional collaboration praised

Jackson County Emergency Manager Delaney Richmond touted the collaboration of regional agencies, which she said was renowned around the state.

“With all the changes in the administration and all the unknowns, I think a lot of people were looking to this fire season thinking that it could be a lot worse, but I’m really confident in these guys. The last few years, with everything we’ve dealt with, they have been impeccable to work with,” she said.

“Everyone is really interoperable, and everything is very plug-and-play, which is really impressive to see because it’s not like this throughout the state,” Richmond said at Tuesday’s meeting in Medford. “We’re working with people who have been here for years and years — a lot of them were born and raised here — and they know every single hilltop, every single peak. They can remember something like eight years ago, when there was a fire in a certain place. 

“They remember the fire’s name and how they fought it. … It’s really humbling to be now part of that and to have a position with these amazing, almost giant-like men and women who really know what they’re doing.”

Richmond said the county’s first pre-fire season test on a newly launched Jackson Alert mass notification system is set for around 10 a.m. Thursday. For more information, visit the county website.

Following the meeting, Quinones said it was impossible to predict everything about the coming season but that preparation — for agencies as well as community members — was key, from creating defensible space to utilizing technology and collaborating between agencies.

“Any and everything we can do locally helps all of us out collectively,” he said.

“We want to leverage each other’s strengths across agencies, utilize the closest forces concept and be decisive in our initial attack. … We’re postured, we are ready, we are coordinating. If we have a challenge that (exceeds) our coverage, it will not be for lack of trying or for not being prepared.”

Quinones added, “I tell everyone who asks, ‘Ask me in November and I’ll let you know what fire season looks like.’”

Reach reporter Buffy Pollock at 458-488-2029 or buffy.pollock@rv-times.com. Follow her on Twitter @orwritergal.