Single Publication

A community meeting will be held for the Anvil Fire on Thursday, September 7 at 6:00 p.m. at The Grange (44556 Highway 101) in Sixes. If internet connection allows, the meeting will be broadcast on Facebook Live. Otherwise, it will be recorded and posted to Facebook afterwards.

Flat Fire Activity

Size: 34,242 acres             Start Date:  July 15, 2023                Point of origin: 2 miles southeast of Agness, OR

Containment: 70%           Total personnel: 323

Resources: 5 crews, 3 helicopters, 12 engines, 6 water tenders, 11 pieces of heavy equipment

Yesterday, fire managers checked several areas where heat signatures showed up on the infrared flight on Monday night. These were investigated and no threat to containment was found. Crews are working closely with resource advisors to repair impacts to the landscape caused by suppression efforts. Native straw bales were delivered and will be spread with native seed, primarily along roadsides that intersect with dozer lines. Water bars are also being installed to prevent erosion. Other suppression repair activities may include pulling in berms from heavy equipment lines with excavators and hand crews and chipping branches and small trees. Some interior pockets of vegetation continue to burn and show some smoke. Crews are addressing any heat within a chain (66 feet) of the fire’s edge. Initial Attack resources are staged and ready to assist the Forest if needed, but they did not respond to any fires yesterday.

Anvil Fire Activity

Size: 301 acres               Start Date:  August 25, 2023      Point of origin: 8 miles east of Port Orford, OR                           

Containment: 0%           Total personnel: 129

Resources: 4 crews, 3 helicopters, 5 engines, 4 water tenders, 2 pieces of heavy equipment

Warmer temperatures and lower humidity levels increased fire activity on the Anvil Fire today. Four helicopters dropped 80,780 gallons of water on the western edge to slow the fire’s spread. Fire managers identified an area on the northwest side where crews will build direct line close to the fire’s edge. This line will extend up a ridgeline on the northern side. Two Wildland Fire Modules will identify and implement line construction and monitor fire behavior. Firefighters are working to improve the Grassy Knob Road to use as a control feature by removing vegetation along the roadside. Crews are also working along the Elk River and Sixes River roads to remove hazardous fuels around structures and clear snags (dead standing trees) along the roads. Initial Attack resources remain ready but saw no new fires yesterday.

Weather: Warming temperatures and decreasing afternoon humidity are expected today. A weak cold front may bring slightly cooler temperatures and higher relative humidities on Thursday. Winds will remain light and terrain driven.

Smoke: Visit https://fire.airnow.gov/ for the national wildfire smoke map.

Closures: U.S. Highway 199 has been reopened to all traffic using a pilot car system north of Gasquet to the Oregon border in California. Local law enforcement is discouraging any non-essential traffic along this route. Expect 20-40 minute delays. The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest (RRSNF) has issued closure orders in the areas of the Flat and Anvil fires. For more information, visit https://bit.ly/RRSNFAlerts

Evacuations: Level 1 “Get Ready” evacuation status is in place for areas near the Flat Fire. Level 2 “Get Set“ evacuation status is in place along the Elk River from about milepost 4 to the USFS Butler Bar Campground near the Anvil Fire. Sign up for Curry Co. Everbridge Notifications (emergency alerts) at https://bit.ly/CurryCoEM to receive evacuation alerts.

Restrictions: The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest is decreasing the fire danger from Extreme down to High and the Industrial Fire Precaution Level from Level 3 to Level 2, effective September 5, 2023. Public Use Restrictions (PUR) remain at Stage 3 across the forest and on the Wild Section of the Rogue National Wild and Scenic River. Visit https://bit.ly/RRSNFAlerts for more information. There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) over the fire areas. Please do not fly unmanned aircraft (drones) in the fire vicinity. If you fly, we can't.