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QuickTake:
The lightning-sparked wildfire about 20 miles southeast of Oakridge is Oregon’s second-largest active blaze. Persistent fire weather continues, prompting closure of popular trails and campgrounds.
This story was updated to reflect the latest estimate of acres burned and emergency closures of recreational sites.
The Emigrant Fire has burned 7,400 acres, since lightning ignited it Sunday.
The National Interagency Fire Center reported Wednesday that the fire – in Lane County, 22 miles southeast of Oakridge – torched in treetops as winds carried embers that ignited new fires.
Relentless gusts have fanned the flames for days across a drought-stricken forest scarred by another extreme fire nearly 15 years ago. Scientists call this a reburn, which poses extra danger to firefighters as standing dead trees, or snags, can fall without warning. Dried to tinder, the forest burned with explosive intensity as thunderstorms rolled through this week.
The fire grew so hot Monday it created its own weather system, generating rising air currents that formed a pyrocumulus cloud — a towering mass that develops when intense heat mixes with moisture and unstable air. Once rare, such fire-driven weather has become increasingly common as climate change fuels larger and more destructive wildfires.
The cloud has since dissipated, but smoke continues to loft over the Cascade Mountains and drift into the foothills. National Weather Service forecasters do not expect air quality in cities such as Eugene and Springfield to reach unhealthy levels, though haze will remain noticeable through Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the resource-intensive effort to contain the Emigrant Fire continues near Forest Service Road 21. Helicopters and planes drop water and monitor from above, while firefighters on the ground dig containment lines — cleared strips of land designed to stop the flames from spreading.
An emergency closure order is in effect for roads, trails, and campgrounds near the fire. This includes the popular Indigo Springs Campground and a portion of the Middle Fork Trail. The U.S. Forest Service has provided a full list of closures on its Willamette National Forest incident page.
The Emigrant Fire is Oregon’s second-largest active blaze. The National Interagency Fire Center estimates the response has already cost $600,000. The largest active fire in Oregon, the Flat Fire north of Sisters, has cost about $12.6 million.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek proposed using $160 million from the state’s rainy day fund for wildfire response this season after the state struggled to cover costs last year.
Fire weather warnings persist in the areas where these fires are burning, keeping the potential for rapid fire spread high.
