Update 12:42 p.m.: The Board Shanty Fire is now listed at 339 acres, according to the Watch Duty app.

Update 9 a.m.: Oregon Department of Forestry Incident Management Team 3 took command of the estimated 300-acre Board Shanty Fire, located south of Grants Pass, Friday morning at 6 a.m.

No cause has been listed.

The fire sparked Thursday evening and has led to evacuation notices. The Josephine County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management placed Zones JCU-436 and JCU-437 under a Level 2 – Be Set to evacuate notice and a Level 1 – BE READY for JCU-448. Additionally, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management have placed Zone JAC-068 under a Level 1 – Be Ready evacuation notice. For the latest updates on evacuations, visit https://protect.genasys.com.

“Taking advantage of cooler temperatures overnight, crews established 5,000 feet of handline along Board Shanty Road on the northeast perimeter of the fire and slowed growth at the head,” a Friday morning news release from the ODF Southwest Oregon District said. “Firefighters are facing very active fire behavior, including frequent spotting over the line, as well as overhead hazards, such as standing dead timber that could fall. Today, crews will continue aggressive, direct firefighting tactics as they look to connect line from the head to the heal of the fire with the assistance of aviation.”

ODF Southwest Oregon District responded to the blaze around 5 p.m. Thursday, along with numerous engines from Grants Pass Fire, Rural Metro Fire, a contingent of engines from Rogue Valley fire agencies and resources reassigned from the Grizzly Complex, the release said.

IMT3 will be in command of the Board Shanty Fire in addition to the 22 fully lined fires within the Grizzly Complex, which is currently at 79% containment with over half of the fires at 90% or more containment. IMT 3 was initially ordered Tuesday, July 8, to take command of 22 of the fires within the Grizzly Complex.

“Hot temperatures, low humidity and gusty wind conditions persist in the area, naturally increasing fire risk and contributing to potential fire growth,” the release said. “Aircraft will be used heavily today to help suppress the fire. Drone use near fires is both illegal and extremely dangerous to pilots working on incidents. If you fly, we can’t. All illegal drone use will be reported to law enforcement.”

Local fire regulations can be found at https://swofire.com/public-fire-restrictions/.

For more fire information, visit the OSF SWO Facebook page, @ODFSouthwest on X or www.swofire.com.