A red flag warning was extended until Friday evening as new wildfires ignited and existing fires spread across Oregon.
The warning was extended due to continued hot temperatures, low humidity and gusty winds, and was set to remain in place until 11 p.m. Friday, the National Weather Service said .
Here are the latest wildfire updates across Oregon.
Rail Ridge Fire explodes to 107,371 acres as Gov. Tina Kotek invokes conflagration act
Gov. Tina Kotek invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act for two wildfires in eastern Oregon on Friday. The Rail Ridge Fire, located 7 miles south of Dayville, exploded to 107,371 acres as of Friday morning. It became just the latest in a string of megafires — blazes over 100,000 acres — in eastern Oregon this fire season.
The act was also declared for the Shoe Fly Fire, estimated at 24,188 acres.
The Oregon State Fire Marshal said its mobilizing its Blue Incident Management Team and several task forces to the Rail Ridge Fire in Grant and Crook counties and the Shoe Fly Fire in Wheeler County.
The two fires are being managed by an incident management team from California.
“The conditions we are seeing on the ground are very dynamic with several fires burning in the region," Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said in a news release. "There’s no real relief in the forecast over the weekend and into early next week.”
Air quality declines for much of Oregon. When will it improve?
Wildfire smoke impacted Oregon’s air quality across the state on Friday, but it's expected to gradually improve over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
Air quality declined Friday to “moderate” across the state, “unhealthy for sensitive groups” in Eugene and the Santiam Canyon and even “unhealthy” in Central Oregon and the Cascade Mountains.
The only place with good air quality was the Oregon Coast.
Easterly winds pushed smoke in from fires east of the Willamette Valley, amid extremely hot and dry conditions, which have caused wildfires to grow .
That was expected to change gradually over the weekend.
“The smoke should start to thin out (Saturday) and there shouldn’t be much of any smoke left by Sunday (on the west side of the state),” NWS meteorologist Clinton Rockey said.
“The smoke will still be a problem on the east side and central parts of the state, but even there it shouldn’t be as bad because the weather should cause the fires to quiet down a little,” Rockey added.
Milepost 98 Fire near Canyonville brings evacuations
A wildfire near Milepost 98 on Interstate 5 near Canyonville in southern Oregon brought level 3 evacuations to the surrounding area.
The fire was estimated at 93 acres as of Friday morning. Fire activity died down overnight.
I-5 remained open with delays as of Friday morning. An evacuation map can be found at bit.ly/4cRppEp .
208 Fire, burning near Diamond Peak, doubles in size
The 208 Fire located near Diamond Peak and southeast of Oakridge doubled in size amid hot temperatures and east winds on Thursday, reaching 4,555 acres by Friday morning.
The fire was 0% contained as of Friday morning.
"Elevated fire activity has compromised previously identified lines," a Friday morning report said.
Three hotshot crews and all available aircraft are working to slow rate of spread and develop new strategic plans towards containment, fire officials said.
"Active flanking is anticipated around all portions of the fire perimeter except rocky portions within the wilderness and areas to the north, northwest where previous fuels treatments are slowing the rate of spread," the report said.
Fire south of Salem put out Thursday
A 1 acre wildfire was extinguished Thursday afternoon south of Salem on Riverside Drive, just north of Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge.
The fire brought major concern and evacuations, but was caught by fire crews .
Historic Columbia River Highway trail closed between Mosier and Hood River
The Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail is closed between Mosier and Hood River due to a ground fire near an old dumping area, which could release toxic smoke, according to the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.
"Please avoid this closed area," the agency said in a social media post. "You can still enjoy the section between the Wyeth trailhead and Viento State Park."
Fossil Complex established to manage four fires
The Fossil Complex is comprised of four fires in eastern Oregon near the town of Fossil. The fires include the Canyon, Holmes, and Kinzua fires. The blazes were reported Thursday as hot and dry conditions led to new fire and the spread of fires across the state. The fires cover roughly 1,000 to 1,500 acres of grass and timber.
Huckleberry Ridge Fire in SW Washington could push smoke into Portland
A 150-acre fire burning in southwest Washington, the Huckleberry Ridge Fire, could push smoke into the Portland area as the blaze grows in the Willapa Hills area.
Shoe Fly Fire reaches 21,623 acres near Painted Hills
The Shoe Fly Fire located just north of Mitchell and the Painted Hills unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument reached 21,623 acres.
“Hot temperatures and low relative humidity prompted a more active day on the Shoe Fly Fire,” fire crews said. Level 3 evacuation orders were in place around the blaze and level 1 and 2 warnings were issued near Highway 26.
The majority of Mitchell, on the south side of Highway 26, was not in an evacuation zone as of Friday morning. The Painted Hills also did not appear to be in an evacuation zone. A map can be found at bit.ly/3AMGli3 .
Devil’s Knob Fire reaches 1,752 acres in southern Oregon
The Devil’s Knob Fire located east of Riddle and Tiller reached 1,752 acres in the Umpqua National Forest.
“Aerial and ground resources arrived on scene and have been actively engaging in an aggressive initial attack,” fire crews said. An Incident Command Team was ordered to mobilize.
Overnight easterly winds accelerated fire activity leading to growth of the fire perimeter beyond the wilderness boundary. Firefighters on Friday were evaluating existing lines and planning contingency lines to secure the fire perimeter and protect private timberlands to the west. Friday’s fire behavior could include torching and spotting.
Red Fire reaches 877 acres near Diamond Peak, keeps PCT closed
The Red Fire located near Crescent Lake was more active and reached 877 acres.
A closure remained in place around Crescent Lake and in the Diamond Peak Wilderness on Friday, and the Pacific Crest Trail was closed from north of Windigo Pass (Mile 1883.5) to Highway 58 (Mile 1909.5).
Wiley Flat Fire is 18,000 acres
The Wiley Flat Fire located in the Maury Mountains east of Bend reached 18,000 acres.
Copperfield Fire reaches 43% containment
The Copperfield Fire located north of Klamath Falls reached 43% containment by Friday morning. The fire brought level 3 evacuation orders to the area but has since shown limited growth.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 16 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast . Urness is the author of “ Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon ” and “ Hiking Southern Oregon .” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on X at @ZachsORoutdoors.
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon wildfires: Rail Ridge Fire explodes to 107,371 acres, Kotek declares conflagration
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