Fire Damages RV And Several Vehicles In Gales Creek (Photo) - 09/27/26

At 10:04am on Sunday September 27th, Forest Grove Firefighters were dispatched to a reported residential fire in the 56700 block of NW Wilson River Highway, near the community of Gales Creek. As crews responded, dispatchers advised the fire was in a 5th wheel RV and not a fixed structure. Due to the potential of the fire spreading, the full response continued to the scene. When firefighters arrived on scene, they found the RV fully engulfed in flames with two nearby passenger vehicles on fire. While initiating the fire attack, a live power line to a nearby house under construction had burned and fell to the ground, creating a hazard for firefighters to work around. Firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading to a nearby house under construction as well as the forest surrounding the property. It took firefighters approximately 15 minutes to deem the incident under control. 

Crews worked for over an hour extinguishing hot spots from the exterior of the RV, which was too unstable for crews to make entry into the interior. For approximately an hour during the fire incident, we had one lane of Wilson River Highway (OR Highway 6) closed due to our fire apparatus blocking. Washington County Sheriff Deputies provided traffic control during the duration of the lane closure. 
 

The RV was being used as a primary residence, while work on the house was being conducted. The cause of the fire is under investigation. The RV as well as two cars were heavily damaged, with two additional vehicles receiving moderate and minor damage. The resident was evaluated on scene for smoke inhalation, but didn't require transport to a hospital. 
 

Forest Grove Fire & Rescue was assisted on scene by Banks Fire District, Cornelius Fire Department, Washington County Sheriffs Office, AMR, Portland General Electric and Oregon Department of Transportation.