Single Publication

July 30, 2024

**Diamond Complex and Middle Fork fire Q & A session at Diamond Lake Resort, 12:00 pm, Wednesday July 31, 2024. Fire staff on hand to answer community questions.**

The Diamond Complex on the Umpqua National Forest is estimated at 5,188 acres and 9% contained and Middle Fork is 715 acres and 1% contained, within Crater Lake National Park. The park remains open. There are fire personnel in the area, so visitors should use caution when traveling within the park. 

The Umpqua National Forest increased Public Use Restrictions to Level 3 across all ranger districts of the forest today in response to the drying conditions and increased fire activity. More information can be found at https://bit.ly/3xIZZdK. Broken Arrow, Diamond Lake, and Thielsen View Campgrounds are open and taking reservations through www.recreation.gov 

The Trail fire, east of Hwy 138 on the west slope of Mt. Thielsen, is 826 acres and 25% contained. Yesterday, aircraft dropped buckets of water along the northeastern flank. Firefighters continue to secure the line and mop up along the north and south flanks of the fire, creating depth from the control line by removing unwanted fuels.

The Lemolo fire, north of Lemolo Lake on Bunker Hill, is 804 acres and 0% contained. Firefighters worked to contain the fire on the east side of FS Road 700. Firefighters conducted a small burnout operation along the northern flank where crews will now prep line west and south down to the Lemolo Road.

The Pine Bench fire, north of Hwy 138 near Dry Creek, is 1,981 acres and 0% contained. Crews continue to hold and mop up along the FS 4775 road where a burn out operation occurred.  Firefighters will prep the northeast flank for potential future strategic burns.

The Rough fire, two miles south of Hwy 138, is 11 acres and 0% contained. Rappelers continue removing snags and creating safer conditions so crews can engage and begin creating a fuel break.

Crews on both the Watson fire, 233 acres and 50% contained, and Loafer fire, 34 acres and 50% contained, will complete direct line construction and hose lay.  Crews are working to mitigate the snags  and thick duff layer that exists within these fires.

Bear Trap, 64 acres and 10% contained, 2 miles south of Hwy 138 near Bear Trap Mountain now has a control line around the entire fire so crews will begin mop up and patrol.

The Pig Iron fire, near Pig Iron Mountain north of Hwy 138, is 27 acres and 95% contained. Aircraft dropped more than 10,000 gallons of water where the fire crossed a small portion of the western flank control line Sunday. Firefighters are confident the fire will stay in its current footprint.

Other fires within the complex consist of:  Brodie, 116 acres and 0% contained,  about 5 miles south of Hwy 138 and south of Devils Canyon; Trep, 129 acres and 0% contained, about 4 miles south of Hwy 138; Garwood, 5 acres and 95% contained, about 3 miles southwest of Mt. Bailey; Slide, 0.1 acres and 95% contained, northeast of Pine Bench; Potter, 690 acres and 0% contained, north of Hwy 138 about 2 miles southeast of Potter Mountain; Ooya, 186 acres and 0% contained, north of Hwy 138 about 1 mile northeast of Bird Point; Clearwater, 0.7 acre and 100% contained, south of Hwy 138 about 5 miles northwest of Diamond Lake; Elephant, 0.7 acres and 95% contained, 2 miles southwest of Lemolo Lake; Lost Bear, 0.1 acres and 0% contained, 2 miles south of Hwy 138; Lost, 22 acres and 0% contained, 4 miles south of Hwy 138;  Sheep, 0.3 acres and 95% contained, 3 miles north of Diamond Lake; Thin, 0.6  acre and 90% contained, four miles northwest of Diamond Lake; Trap, 13 acres and 0% contained, 1 mile south of Hwy 138 near Trap Mountain;; Campwood, 19 acres and 0% contained, 2 miles south of Hwy 138;  Birds, 0.1 acres and 100% contained; Wood, 23 acres and 0% contains, 2 miles south of Hwy 138, Mowich, 0.4 acre and 95% contained, 1 mile north of Hwy 138, Toolbox, 0.1 acres and 0% contained, and Canal, 1 acre and 0% contained.

The Middle Fork fire is located in the northwest corner of Crater Lake National Park. Firefighters completed line yesterday along the western flank. This line is now the holding feature to check potential fire spread west towards the Rogue-Siskiyou National Forest.  Firefighters continue working on a control line from both the east and west to the Junction of the Bald Crater Loop Trail.  

Weather: Today will be mostly cloudy with patchy fog in the morning and a slight chance of rain early morning then clearing through the afternoon.  Temperatures in the low to mid 70’s with increased relative humidity in the 40-50% range is forecast for today.  Ridgetops winds will be around 20 mph but fire behavior should remain moderate. 

Fire Behavior: Fire behavior should be limited to backing, flanking, creeping and smoldering, especially under the canopy.  Torching is possible but unlikely today.  Fire behavior may change throughout the day as smoke and cloud shading changes. 

Smoke Outlook: Smoke will remain in the area and may reduce visibility and hinder air operations.  For the most up to date information, please visit www.fire.airnow.gov 

Closures and Evacuations: Umpqua National Forest has issued two closures across the forest in response to fire activity to protect public and wildland firefighter safety. Emergency Fire Closure ORDER NO. 06-15-24-03 and Emergency Fire Closure ORDER NO. 06-15-02-24-01 impact all of the Cottage Grove Ranger District, most of the Diamond Lake Ranger District, and parts of the Tiller and North Umpqua Ranger Districts. The closure orders can be found here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/umpqua/alerts-notices. Fire danger is set at Very High and Public Use Restrictions are set at Level 3: https://bit.ly/3xIZZdK.    

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office has downgraded the evacuation order for the Trail fire from a Level 2: BE SET  to a Level  1: Get Ready, but the Level 3: GO NOW remains in effect for the Trail fire east of Hwy 138. The Level 2: BE SET and Level 3: GO NOW evacuations for the Lemolo fire remain in place. There is still a Level 2: BE SET for the Pine Bench Fire. For more information visit the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office website: www.dcso.com/evacuations.