Prescribed fire planned for Thursday

Taking advantage of cooler weather and localized precipitation, the Deschutes National Forest fuel specialists and firefighters will conduct a prescribed burn on Thursday, June 16, as a live fire training exercise for new firefighters.

This week the Central Oregon Fire Management Service, a service-first organization made up of Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests and Prineville BLM fire staff, is hosting an interagency series of fire classes to train new wildland firefighters. This year's class of 54 students has spent time in the classroom learning about fire behavior, the incident command system (ICS), and wildland firefighter techniques and will spend time in the field learning how to dig fire line, utilize pumps and hoses, and how to safely put fire on the landscape. The new recruits will be supervised and assisted at all times by experienced and qualified wildland firefighters.

The 28-acre unit slated for treatment is two miles west of Sisters on the north side of Highway 242 west of Tollgate. This unit was selected to be burned to decrease hazardous fuels accumulations within the Wildland Urban Interface near Tollgate and Sisters.

Due to the location of this unit, the public could see smoke and drivers may experience smoke impacts on nearby highways and Forest roads. For all prescribed fires, signs will be posted on significant nearby Forest roads and state highways that could be impacted. No road closures are anticipated with this project. Residences and businesses in the area are advised to keep their windows and doors closed during the night hours to avoid any potential smoke impacts.

Fuels specialists will follow policies outlined in the Oregon Department of Forestry smoke management plan, which governs prescribed fires (including pile burning), and attempts to minimize impacts to visibility and public health.