Upper Applegate Fire’s final burn scar mapped at 1,143 acres, ODF says

Published 2:30 pm Monday, July 1, 2024

The Oregon Department of Forestry says mapping has placed the Upper Applegate Fire at 1,143 acres as its final size.

“The fire remains 100% lined with direct line” and is 35% mopped-up, ODF said in what it described as its final news release Monday morning.

Three hundred personnel are assigned to the fire, including 11 20-person crews, six engines, three water tenders and five tree fallers. Aircraft assigned remains the same as Sunday’s fleet with two Type 2 helicopters for water bucket drops and a Type 3 helicopter operating as an air attack platform, according to the release.

The fire was first reported June 20 in the late afternoon. Investigators say the cause of the fire was someone mowing dried grass, ODF said Thursday.

ODF said a scaled-down Type 4 incident management team led by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management will take command of the fire Tuesday morning.

“Today, the team is shadowing the current organization for a full shift to ensure a smooth transition,” Monday’s release said. “Key personnel, including the incident commander, have been working with current management for the past couple days. Firefighters on this team will continue to mop up and conduct suppression repairs.

“However, even when this work is completed, smoke may be seen within the fire perimeter for several weeks to months,” according to ODF. “This is normal and to be expected.”

BLM has “issued a closure order for BLM-managed lands in the fire area, including Grouse Creek Road,” ODF said in earlier posts. “A map and additional information is available at blm.gov/orwafire. Little Applegate Road and Applegate Lake remain open,” ODF said, but “firefighters are working near and on the side of the road 24 hours a day.”

ODF-protected lands in the Southwest Oregon District have been upgraded to “high” (yellow), and the Industrial Fire Precaution Level has been upgraded to Level II.

The upgrade from the current “moderate” level largely focuses on when power-driven equipment can be used on the 1.8 million acres of ODF-protected lands in Jackson and Josephine counties.

As of Monday, chainsaws, mowers, weed eaters — not to mention the grinding and cutting of metal or use of other spark-emitting equipment — are prohibited between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Mowing green lawns is still allowed during the day under the new restrictions.

For industrial operations under Industrial Fire Protection Level II, the upgraded restrictions impact power saws, feller bunchers with rotary head saws, cable yarding and welding, cutting or grinding of metal to after 8 p.m. or up until 1 p.m. daily.

For more information about fire season restrictions, call ODF’s Medford unit at 541-664-3328.