After a day of heavy fire activity, firefighters worked through the night on the Darlene 3 Fire to conduct firing operations and complete containment lines. The Central Oregon Type 3 team remains in unified command with the Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM) Red Team.
The fire is currently 3,889 acres with 30% containment. Winds and warm temperatures yesterday resulted in fire spots beyond the fire perimeter, causing the fire to expand east into the Deschutes National Forest. The fire burned into several fuel treatment areas previously completed by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service, which moderated fire activity. Last night, firefighters were successful in finishing containment lines and completing firing operations.
Today’s focus is to strengthen the existing lines with dozers, handcrews, and engines while the temperatures and wind are favorable. An informational community meeting will be held virtually on Friday evening – more details will be shared.
Since the fire began early Monday afternoon, structural and wildland resources have continued to arrive at the incident command post in La Pine to support the fire, bringing the personnel total to 335. There are 38 engines, five handcrews, eight water tenders, and multiple dozers and aircraft dedicated to fire suppression. Six task forces of structural firefighters are actively protecting structures and conducting mop-ups around homes and infrastructure. Fire officials are grateful to community members for following evacuation orders and helping keep firefighters safe on the roads by driving responsibly.
For the most up-to-date official evacuation information, please visit Deschutes County evacuation information. The Red Cross is staffing the evacuation shelter at La Pine High School (51633 Coach Rd.). The La Pine Activity Center (16450 Victory Way) is open for RVs to park and has meals for evacuees and N95 masks for those impacted by smoke. The La Pine Rodeo Grounds is accepting livestock and companion animals in coordination with the Pet Evacuation Team. Bend Pet Resort (60909 SE 27th St., Bend), is accepting cats and dogs and can be reached by calling 458-666-7505.
Air quality information can be found at aqi.oregon.gov or by downloading the OregonAir app on Apple or Android phones.
Some recreation areas in Deschutes National Forest remain closed, including 6 Mile Sno Park, Prairie Campground, McKay Crossing Campground, Ogden Group Campground, & the Rosland OHV play area & associated. The Prineville District Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has also issued an Emergency Public Land Closure. The closure includes all BLM-administered lands within National Forest Road 180 on the south, Highway 97 on the west, Paulina Lake Road on the north, and the Deschutes National Forest Boundary on the east. This closure notice is available here.
FEMA fulfilled the state of Oregon’s request and authorized federal funds to help with firefighting costs on the incident through a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) declaration. This declaration also paves the way for local agencies to pursue additional post-fire mitigation funds.
For current wildfire updates and community meeting details, the public can visit centraloregonfire.org or follow fire information on X (Twitter). Community members and media can also call the Central Oregon Fire Info phone line at 541.316.7711.