News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters -- 1 p.m., Wednesday, July 31 -- Black Butte Ranch residents will return to their homes at 3 p.m. Wednesday, July 31, after three nights and two days of evacuation.
Ranch residents got that piece of good news at a noon meeting at Sisters Elementary School.
BBR Police Chief Gil Zaccaro emphasized that the 3 p.m. time is strict. No parking or stopping is allowed on Highway 20.
"Please do not line up on the highway waiting for 3 p.m.," he said. "If you hit the left turn lane at 3 p.m., you'll be welcomed, but if you get there before that we will turn you around."
The Ranch is open to residents and guests who were registered on Sunday when the evacuation was ordered and who left belongings in their lodgings.
"We're going to be real strict today," Zaccaro said.
On Thursday, however, "it's business as usual," the chief said.
Law enforcement and fire officials warned that the fire is not over.
"Don't be complacent," Zaccaro said. "We need to be on our guard here. There's still a threat at the door.'
That threat remained much diminished today, but Fire Incident Commander Bob Sandman told the residents that "There's still active fire out there. This fire is not out."
In fact, Sandman said, the fire won't be put out completely until the Sisters country gets some rain. As soon as the situation is secure, fire crews will be pulled off to join the battle against other major blazes burning throughout Oregon.
The Cache Mountain fire will be patrolled by local Forest Service and Oregon Department of Forestry personnel. They will be ready to respond to any flare-ups.
With that in mind, the Forest Service reminds residents that the forest around the Ranch remains closed.
The Ranch will also restrict access to the Fiddleneck Lane area where the fire hit hardest.
"Please don't drive down there, don't walk down there, don't take your bicycle down there," Zaccaro said. "These folks (the homeowners) need to catch their breaths. Let's leave these folks alone for awhile."
The general public will be allowed in on Thursday and Sandman had one request as the golf courses open amid continued patrols by fire engines.
"All we ask is that you holler 'Fore!' when you're on that golf course and we have those structure engines in there so we don't catch one of those golf balls," he said.
The levity reflected a general mood of relief and pleasure among residents at the prospect of returning home.
Ranch resident Ann Coombs said that her family has "actually had it pretty nice because (her husband) Mac's mom has a place in Sage Meadow (near Sisters)."
Both she and her husband took the day off work on Monday as firefighters battled to hold the fire away from the Ranch, but they went back to work yesterday.
Coombs said she and her neighbors planned a work party to help each other move their belongings back into their homes.
"Our street has about eight permanent residents on it, so we really do have a good neighborhood," she said.
Her impression was that evacuees have remained in good spirits, especially after the fire was stopped on Monday. She expects that they will be hosting plenty of visitors soon.
"I think folks are just anxious to get back and take a look at things initially," she said.
Then, they will invite friends and family to enjoy the place that was so recently threatened.
Plans are already underway for residents to celebrate weathering the firestorm.
Flyers were circulating at the meeting inviting residents to a "Grateful Return" picnic on August 4.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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