Oregon Department of Forestry - South Cascade

07/16/2026

Yesterdays lightning kept us quite busy. Our engine crews were checking lightning strikes on both private and adjacent federal lands, helping to stomp out any fire that was found.

The good news is there are no known starts on private land (within the South Cascade District) at this time. The Willamette National Forest reported ~750 strikes, with 11 confirmed fires (the largest estimated to be 1-2 acres). All fires are staffed and in full suppression mode.

A BIG thank you to our local industrial landowners that collaborated to fund private aerial detection flights, which was instrumental in quickly locating these fires. While the flights focused on private lands, they photographed and provided GPS locations of fire found on adjacent federal lands, allowing us to coordinate with the Willamette NF to prioritize and staff them without wasting hours trying to find them. There may be some "sleepers" that just haven't thrown enough smoke to be found yet. But things are looking good at the moment.

The ODF and Private aerial detection planes will continue to look for smoke on a regular basis.

07/15/2026

Our indices are climbing. As such, ODF South Cascade and ODF Western Lane will be moving into HIGH/Yellow Fire Danger at 12:01 am, Friday July 17th. This means all campfires (except those in a campground) require a waiver (free of charge, just call your local ODF office), and allowed activities must shut down by 10:00 am.

Please refer to the color coded worksheet for more specific details.

07/14/2026

Miners Meadow Fire update for 7/14/26. Oregon Department of Forestry South Cascade is engaged with our local cooperators and interagency partners. Fire has stayed in the foot print. Fire behavior has reduced and there was no fire growth overnight. The fire remains at approximately 3 acres. There are no road closures at this time. We urge the public to avoid the area for our firefighters safety.

07/14/2026

Sweet Home ODF is currently working on containing a 2-3 acre fire up the Quartzville Corridor, near Miners Meadow. The following resources are on scene with more on order:

- (4) ODF Type 6 engines
- (1) ODF Type 4 engine
- (1) USFS Type 3 engine
- (3) Water tenders
- (2) Helicopters

There is heavy emergency truck and aviation traffic up the Quartville, please stay out of the Miners Meadow area for your safety and ours

Send a message to learn more

07/10/2026

Effective 7-13-2026 at 12:01 am the South Cascade District will move into Industrial Fire Precaution Level 2 with a 2 hour fire watch. The district will remain in a MODERATE public fire danger level.

Send a message to learn more

07/07/2026

The Eastern Lane Fire Crew completed a complex, multi-resource simulated fire scenario today in the Deerhorn area. The crews stretched 1,000's of feet of charged hose, dug handline, coordinated with aerial resources, maintained continued water supply, and dealt with a simulated "incident within an incident" (medical emergency). The scenarios were in thick slash and some steep ground to add to the complexity.

Our crews continually practice to increase efficiency, enhance crew cohesion, and build a culture of safe/aggressive firefighting.

06/29/2026

The Oregon Department of Forestry extends its deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the wildland firefighters who lost their lives this past week in the line of duty.

Over this past weekend, three firefighters were lost fighting the Knowles and Gore fires on the
Colorado-Utah border. Three other firefighters were lost in an aviation incident last Wednesday in Canada’s Northwest Territories.

“Fire is a tight knit community. The loss of a firefighter, no matter the agency, hits hard each time.” said Michael Curran, ODF Fire Protection Division Chief.

We stand by our federal and international partners as they navigate these tragedies and mourn alongside the rest of our wildland fire community.

06/26/2026

𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒: You may see smoke Friday, June 26th, outside of Sweet Home, North of Foster Reservoir. ODF will be conducting a live fire exercise for the last day of the Mid-Willamette Valley Interagency Fire School.

These live fire exercises give our student firefighters the opportunity to practice what they've learned all week in a controlled environment.

06/19/2026

Effective immediately, the South Cascade District has moved to MODERATE Fire Danger. This means that several activities, like mowing and chainsaw use, are now required to be completed before 1:00 pm

Please refer to the chart to determine if your activity is allowed and/or the times permitted.

The IFPL remains at level 1 for now.