Sheriff calls rainfall over Durkee Fire a ‘godsend’ as wildfire keeps growing

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Durkee Fire continues to rage in Eastern Oregon as its size grew overnight to 268,492 acres, or 419 square miles, despite rainfall Wednesday evening.

Officials say the rain that fell over parts of Baker County was a “godsend,” but the largest active wildfire in the U.S. remains 0% contained as of Thursday morning.

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Level 3 “Go Now” evacuations: East of Highway 245, south of US Forest Service Road 11 and west of Deer Creek drainage; northwest of Iron Mountain, southeast of the Pleasant Valley area and south of Pritchard Creek; Ebell Creek from Old Highway 30 to Beaver Mountain.

Level 2 “Be Set” evacuations: South of Highway 86, east from Fivemile Creek, west of lower Timber Canyon and to the ridgetop; south of Love Reservoir Lane, east of Sardine Creek Road, and north of Lawrence Creek.

Level 1 “Be Ready: evacuations: Fivemile Creek, east of Ruckles Creek and Oregon Trail Road to Quartz Creek, and north of (I-84,  the headwaters of Pritchard Creek and Love Reservoir Lane); west of Ebell Creek, north of US Forest Service Road 11, east of Highway 245 and Highway 7 and south of I-84.

Baker County officials said “it is anticipated that there will be a reduction in the evacuation levels” on Thursday due to the previous night’s rainfall. Updates can be found on the social media pages for the Baker County Sheriff’s Office and the Malheur County Sheriff’s Office.

Fire crews expected “extreme fire behavior and growth” Wednesday as the area was threatened by severe thunderstorms and wind gusts of 70-75 mph. A Red Flag Warning and Flash Flood Watch was issued as a precaution.

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A lightning strike sparked the fire off I-84 near Durkee on Thursday, July 18. Since then, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act to combat the blaze, which allows additional resources from around the state to be redirected to fight the fire.

The Durkee Fire is among three other wildfires to reach “megafire” status, meaning the fires have reached a size of at least 100,000 acres, in 2024.

According to numbers reported by the State of Oregon Fires and Hotspots Dashboard, at least 127 active fires are burning throughout the state with more than 948,166 total acres burned. This converts to 1,481 square miles of impacted land.

Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue our wildfire coverage.

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