As summer fast approaches, so does the dread of wildfire season in Oregon. But after a wet winter, state officials are predicting a tamer fire season than last year.
Danger still looms with unpredictable weather and possible heat waves through the summer, warns Gov. Tina Kotek. Already the Portland area could get record-breaking heat into 90 degrees on Mother’s Day.
“The threats will continue to grow as we grapple with hotter, dryer conditions due to climate change,” Kotek said in a press conference Tuesday.
Kotek highlighted a lower drought intensity than last year, rain and strong snowpacks as reasons to believe this year’s fire season may be less intense in most of Oregon. Other areas, particularly in eastern Oregon, may experience an “above average” fire season, Kotek said.
Fire season typically starts in mid-May to early June, with last year’s season beginning closer to July. Officials on Tuesday said they expect the wildfire season to be delayed depending on weather conditions through May and June.
Hot and dry weather paired with strong winds last year extended the fire season into fall, and led to dangerous bouts of unpredictability in fire growth. Similar conditions may return this summer, officials said.
“The rainy conditions we’ve had so far are great and the snowpack is good,” said Mike Shaw, chief of fire protection with the Oregon Department of Forestry. “With that said, I would urge folks to not be complacent with those conditions, because when Mother Nature turns around, and we are calling for 95-degree temperatures this weekend, the ability of those fuels to dry out and become fire-ready occurs really quickly.”
Shaw said rain in spring 2022 into June helped delay last year’s wildfires, which burned around 537,000 acres. In 2021, just under 830,000 acres burned, compared with over a million the year before – one of the most destructive fire seasons in Oregon’s history.
Oregon fire crews will focus on stopping wildfires before they spread, Shaw said. Fires are monitored with smoke detection cameras and aircraft surveillance. Shaw said the department is also introducing drones to help find and map fires.
Oregon’s fire service currently employs around 11,000 firefighters, according to Mariana Ruiz-Temple, Oregon state fire marshal. Ruiz-Temple said they have seen a declining number of volunteers over the past three years, but that grants provided by the state have helped compensate and increase fire staffing.
The Oregon Department of Forestry is working to redesign its statewide wildfire risk map, but has caught backlash from property owners who would be forced to make costly investments to comply with new safety standards. The department delayed the map’s release until at least late summer or early fall, officials told The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Officials warned Oregonians to prepare regardless of where they live, and sign up for alerts on their phones to monitor wildfires near them. Officials recommend using the Everbridge mobile app or texting your zip code to 888777.
Those in rural areas should clean their yards and clear dead foliage and flammable materials.
“There are days the fire wins, and we have to be prepared for that,” Shaw said.
– Austin De Dios; adedios@oregonian.com; @austindedios; 503-319-9744
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