Dutch, Klamath NF. Transfer of command from IMT 2 (Fillis) back to local unit today. Five miles northeast of Klamath River, CA. Chaparral. Smoldering.
Tuesday, 3:43 pm: Significant progress has been made in suppressing the Dutch Fire on the Klamath National Forest. Only a very few “smokes” (burning/smoldering vegetation) within the containment lines of the fire exist and fire crews will prioritize extinguishing them in the next few days. Hand crews and engines have almost completely secured or mopped-up an area 300 feet from containment lines. This work will continue today and tomorrow.
The fire has not increased in size and is being held at 371 acres of burned area. There are 173 acres on the Klamath National Forest and 198 acres of private land that have burned. Fire crews have begun to repair any negative impacts from fire suppression activities and will bring back any un-needed equipment or debris. Fire managers are in the process of “right-sizing” the fire fighting organization and are releasing crews and equipment for rest or re-deployment on other fires. The Dutch Fire is now considered 80% contained.
No lost-time injuries have been reported and no structures have been damaged by the fire.
Temperatures are expected to increase in the next few days and the relative humidity (amount of moisture in the air) is predicted to lower. Today’s temperature is forecast to be in the high 90’s and the relative humidity will be similar to yesterday, in the 14 to 22% range throughout the day. This weather pattern is typical for this time of year along the Klamath River and makes for ideal burning conditions. This is the middle of the fire season and home owners are urged to prepare their properties for potential wildfire and create a defensible space around structures. This will better protect your investments and create a safe living environment. It will also lessen the danger to fire fighters and your neighbors.
Monday, 2:41 pm: The smoke has been significantly reduced from Saturday evening’s peak, when the Dutch Fire was actively burning in dense concentrations of tall brush and scattered trees. There is a fire line constructed around the entire fire and additional contingency lines have been built to the north and uphill from the main fire front. There are still pockets of unburned fuel within containment lines and fuels that have not fully burned because of being coated by retardant or being dampened by water dropped from helicopters. The Dutch Fire is considered 20% contained. Approximately 350 acres have been burnt within the larger 522 acre containment line.
Recently completed fuel break projects in the Dutch Creek area have reduced vegetation along strategic ridges and around existing structures. The fuel break work was completed by the Klamath River Fire Safe Council and was extremely helpful during the Dutch Fire suppression activities. This pre-work minimized the amount of work that suppression forces had to complete when constructing fire lines. Air tankers were able to more effectively apply retardant to the ridges and helicopters dropping water near the residences could better treat the fine fuels close to the ground during the initial stages of suppressing the Dutch Fire.
There are approximately 865 fire fighters, seven dozers and five helicopters assigned to this fire. No lost-time injuries have been reported to date and no structures have been damaged by the fire.
The ORCA (Oregon and California) Interagency Incident Management Team led by Incident Commander Brett Fillis assumed command responsibilities along with Jim Sweet from CAL FIRE under a unified command this morning at 06:00. Their Incident Command Post is operating from the Collier Rest Stop along I-5 and the Klamath River. This rest stop will be closed to the public until further notice.
Sunday, 11:47 am: The Dutch Fire is on the Klamath National Forest, Happy Camp/Oak Knoll Ranger District, and is estimated at 522 acres in size. It is located to the west of Dutch Creek, and approximately 9 miles west of the Collier Rest Stop on Interstate 5 next to the Klamath River. The community of Gottville is about 1 mile to the west of the fire on State Highway 96.
Hand crews, fire engines, dozers, air tankers and helicopters dropping water worked the Dutch Fire yesterday afternoon and ground forces continued through the night in an effort to construct fire line around the perimeter of the fire. The entire fire now has some fire line either directly or indirectly around the perimeter but there are many acres within containment lines that have not burned. Yesterday afternoon the fire became very active and spotting ahead of the fire front was reported. Similar conditions and weather are expected today. The fire is considered 20% contained due to the unburned fuels (vegetation) within containment lines.
There are approximately seven structures along Dutch Creek and the east flank of the fire appears to be fairly secure and quiet this morning. No evacuations are currently in place, and structural protection fire engines are patrolling along the Dutch Creek Road.
There will be up to 700 fire fighters assigned to this fire by this evening and due to the complexity of this incident, the Klamath National Forest has requested that the ORCA (Oregon and California) Interagency Incident Management Team take over the management of the Dutch Fire tomorrow. They will be establishing a command post to base their operation from at the Collier Rest Stop, at the junction of the Klamath River and Interstate 5. This fire will be managed under unified command with CalFire and the USDA Forest Service. The ORCA Incident Commander will be Brett Fillis, and the CalFire Incident Commander will be Jim Sweet.
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Steep terrain and heavy fuels in alignment with topography is leading to heavy spotting. This will continue to make containment difficult. Transition with T2 IMT should take place this evening. Unified command with Cal Fire was established this morning at 0600. Forces will continue to build line along the east and west flanks. Aviation resources will support operations with bucket work and retardant.
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At approximately 4:20 p.m. on Saturday a fire report was turned in to the Klamath National Forest dispatch center in Yreka. The fire was reported to be burning very actively and a large column of smoke was visible for miles. The Dutch Fire is located north of the Klamath River between Dutch and Empire Creeks and north of State Highway 96. Air tankers and helicopters are actively dropping water and fire retardant at the head of the fire, which is burning uphill at a high rate of spread. Initial reports estimate the fire to be approximately 80-acres and growing quickly.
Fire fighting resources are being mobilized in efforts to contain the fire as small as possible. The fire is burning in steep-rugged terrain with poor access.
No residential evacuations are currently in effect, but plans are being made in case the fire changes direction or threatens any structure.
Many thanks to the Fire Information services for their updates.
