In 2024, Oregon has experienced an unprecedented level of wildfires, setting a new record since the consistent record-keeping started in 1992, according to authorities. With fire season yet to reach its height in mid-August, fires in the state have already consumed over 1.4 million acres or nearly 5700 square kilometres, as reported by Carol Connolly, spokesperson for the Northwest Interagency Coordination Centre. This surpasses the previous record from 2020.
Connolly speaks of 71 major fires, recognized as those that burn over 100 acres of woodland or 300 acres of grass and brushland, being responsible for the majority of the devastation this year. Weather conditions of high temperatures, dryness, and low moisture have exacerbated the outbreak of the wildfires that have ravaged mostly rural and mountain areas, although Portland also faced threats. The result has been a loss of thirty-two homes within the state.
Cherry Grove, a small town located 56km west of Portland, has been hit with Level 3 “immediate evacuation” notices due to a nearby forest fire. According to David Huey, a deputy with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the majority of residents have evacuated.
An effort to control the fire involved airplanes and helicopters collecting water from the neighbouring Henry Hagg Lake, based on information given by Gert Zoutendijk, representative of the Gaston Rural Fire District. Plans are to close the lake to the public over the weekend. As of Friday afternoon, the fire remained at 1.3 square kilometres with no containment, though progress has been made surrounding the fire.
Authorities were also forced to temporarily close part of a state highway in response to another fire near Oregon City, another suburb of Portland, and issue immediate evacuation orders along part of the route.
In the afternoon, officials deescalated the evacuation measures and reinstated the highway access. The Durkee Fire, eastern Oregon’s most extensive inferno, has thus far burnt in excess of 1,180 square kilometers. However, by Friday it was reportedly 95% under control, making it previously the largest fire in the US, according to the authorities.
Nonetheless, the title of largest fire was taken over by California’s Park Fire, which has razed an expanse greater than 1,700 square kilometers, decimating over 600 buildings. An individual was apprehended on suspicion of initiating the blaze by propelling an ignited vehicle into a ravine in a wild park on Sacramento Valley’s fringes, near the city of Chico.
Likewise in California, the El Dorado County’s Crozier Fire has consumed approximately 8 square kilometers. As of Friday night, only 5% was under control according to Cal Fire. The fire continues to burn across steep, untamed terrain, posing a risk to over 4,000 structures. Forecasters predict hot and dry weather conditions to persist over the weekend.
In 2020, several fires in Oregon, the state’s most disastrous year on record, were ranked among the state’s worst natural calamities ever. Fires during the Labour Day weekend caused nine fatalities, devastated upwards of 4,860 square kilometers and resulted in the destruction of several thousand homes and other buildings. – AP