Oregon Department of Forestry www.oregon.gov/odf News Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE BLM Lakeview District August 13, 2021 www.blm.gov/office/lakeview-district-office

Fremont-Winema National Forest Media Contact: www.fs.usda.gov/fremont-winema Tamara Schmidt

Cell: 541-891-6758 [email protected]

Patton Meadow and Willow evening update

LAKEVIEW, Ore. – The Patton Meadow and Willow Valley Fires are continuing to burn in South Central Oregon.

ODF Incident Management Team 3 is in the area and will take command of both the Patton Meadow and Willow Valley Fires at 6 a.m. tomorrow. The fires are being combined into the Fox Complex.

Both fires were caused by lightning yesterday afternoon. Today’s smoke inversion limited the use of aircraft on the fires. However, winds this afternoon were lighter than expected, helping slow fire growth.

The Red Flag Warning over the area today is no longer in effect, but there are thunderstorms moving through the area this evening.

Willow Valley Fire

Estimated to be 774 acres, including 37 acres burning in , with no containment. There were also two acres of spot fires this afternoon that were caught.

The fire is burning 16 miles southeast of Bonanza in Klamath County, mostly on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lakeview District lands north of the Stateline, as well as part of the Modoc National Forest to the south. ODF protected lands are threatened.

There are no evacuation orders in place for the Willow Valley Fire. However, residents in the Willow Valley Reservoir area should be monitoring the fire and prepared to evacuate if necessary.

Patton Meadow Fire

The fire is still estimated to be 7,000 acres with no containment.

The fire is burning approximately 10 miles west of Lakeview in Lake County on the Fremont-Winema National Forest Lakeview District and Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) protected state and private lands.

Wildland firefighters are working to keep the fire north of Oregon State Highway 140, west of the structures along Cottonwood Road. They are focused on protecting structures and infrastructure from the fire. Oregon State Fire Marshal task forces are involved in structure protection and their Blue Team is in Lakeview.

Critical communication infrastructure is being threatened on Grizzly Peak by the Patton Meadow Fire.

For the Patton Meadow Fire, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Management has identified areas for Level 3 (Go Now), Level 2 (Get Set) and Level 1 (Be Ready) in the fire area.

Lake County Evacuations

Level 3 Evacuation Notice (GO NOW – Residents should leave IMMEDIATELY.) • Juniper RV Park to Patton Meadow. • All of Drews Gap, on both sides of Oregon State Highway 140.

Level 2 (GET SET – Residents are urged to be prepared to leave IMMEDIATELY if necessary.) • North of Oregon State Highway 140 from Juniper RV Park to Lower Cottonwood.

Level 1 (GET READY – Residents should make preparations for potential evacuation.) • East of Lower Cottonwood Road and Cottonwood Creek.

The Red Cross has established an evacuation center for the Patton Meadow Fire at Daly Middle School, located at 220 South H St. in Lakeview.

The emergency closure area for the Bootleg Fire on the Fremont-Winema National Forest includes all of the Patton Meadow Fire area and is especially important in the area for public and firefighter safety. The order is formally referenced as Closure Order Number 06-02-21-08.

Violations of the prohibitions are punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for an organization, or imprisonment for not more than 6 months, or both.

With ongoing extreme fire danger and fuel conditions, even a small spark can quickly grow to become a large . Everyone is asked to be careful with anything that could spark a wildfire and to report suspected immediately by calling 911.

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South Central Oregon Fire Management Partnership provides comprehensive wildland fire services to more than eight million acres of land administered by the Bureau of Land Management Lakeview District; Fremont-Winema National Forest; Oregon Department of Forestry Klamath-Lake District; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Sheldon-Hart Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex; and Crater Lake National Park. The area encompasses federal, state, and private lands within south central Oregon and northwest Nevada.