Firefighters quell fast-moving blaze

Firefighters battled the heat of a summer day as well as the heat of flames on Thursday, July 26, as they knocked down a fast-moving blaze that destroyed several structures, including a home in the Sun Mountain subdivision east of Sisters.

Chief Thad Olsen of the Cloverdale Rural Fire Protection District told The Nugget that the initial report on the fire came in just before 1:30 p.m. as a small brush fire. The Cloverdale and Oregon Department of Forestry fire crews that responded knew as soon as they left the station that they were going to be dealing with a lot more than that.

"As soon as they left, they knew they had a large column of smoke," Chief Olsen said. "We just started adding resources."

Abetted by stiff breezes and hot temperatures, the fire was on three different properties when firefighters arrived, and several structures were involved. The fire destroyed a garage and a home and several outbuilding on one property at 67018 West St. and a detached garage on another property. A boat and an RV were also destroyed by the flames.

Homeowner Carolyn Russell escaped uninjured, along with her husband Hurshel.

"Our neighbor Cheryl pounded on the door," she told The Nugget. "I opened the door and she came in with great vigor and said 'You've got to get out! The house is on fire!"

Russell saw that the garage was full of smoke and that fire was at the back of the house.

"We (she and her husband) each grabbed keys," she said. "We had two vehicles and we were able to get those to safety."

Chief Olsen credited wildland firefighting crews from ODF and the Forest Service for keeping the brush fire from spreading while structure firefighters concentrated on quelling the fire in the buildings.

"They really kept the fire from spreading to more houses," Chief Olsen said. "ODF protected one house whose fence was on fire; otherwise they were within seconds of losing their house, too."

Because of the wildland/structure crew teamwork, Olsen said, firefighters were able to keep the blaze contained to the area it had already consumed by the time they arrived on scene.

There were no injuries of either residents or firefighters in the incident - all the more remarkable given that firefighters battled the blaze in temperatures that hit 96 or 97 degrees. Thirty-five firefighters had to engage the blaze because they could only work in short shifts in their heavy turnouts before being relieved to cool down. Olsen said that Bend Fire Department sent out a rehab trailer where firefighters could get out of the heat, and neighbors turned up with water.

The state fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire, though Chief Olsen acknowledged that so much damage had been done that it will be difficult to pinpoint the cause. He said that the fire may not have started as a brush fire and may have started in or around the garage of the home that was destroyed.

Russell told The Nugget that she has no idea what might have sparked the blaze.

Multiple agencies assisted in the battle, including Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire Department, Black Butte Ranch Fire Department, ODF and the Forest Service, the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office and the county road department.

Russell expressed her gratitude for all their efforts (see Letters to the Editor, page 2).

She said that their insurance company has found her and her husband temporary housing and that they will rebuild the home that they built on the property in 2004, after purchasing it in 1987.

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

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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