SALEM, Ore. – With fire danger increasing and Red Flag Warnings issued for a large part of Oregon east of the Cascades, the Oregon State Fire Marshal (OSFM) is pre-positioning firefighters and equipment in Central Oregon.   

Two task forces from Clatsop and Washington counties will mobilize Friday morning, August 4. These firefighters will be pre-positioned in Jefferson County for 72 hours and will stay longer if needed. The two task forces add firefighting capacity if a brush or wildfire breaks out.  

“The increased fire danger and the threat of dry lightning across portions of Oregon is concerning as we head into the weekend,” Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. “We’re using the power of the Oregon Fire Mutual Aid System to move resources and add capacity to respond to any fire that may spark. Our goal is to keep fires small and away from communities.”  

These centrally-located task forces give the OSFM the ability to quickly move firefighters to other parts of the state if they are needed.   

Pre-positioning resources is one of the tools the OSFM has as part of its Response Ready Oregon initiative. These resources boost initial fire attack and allow a quick response to emerging fires in Oregon. These firefighters and equipment are not assigned to a specific fire but are ready to respond if there is a fire.   

With Oregon in the heart of wildfire season, the OSFM encourages all Oregonians to be aware of the dry conditions and take necessary precautions to avoid sparking a human-caused fire. The OSFM asks all Oregonians to be vigilant, and if they spot a fire, report it immediately.  

ABOUT RESPONSE READY OREGON  

The OSFM’s Response Ready Oregon initiative was created to help increase capacity and modernize wildfire response within the Oregon Fire Mutual Aid System (OFMAS). The goal of Response Ready Oregon is to attack fires while they are small, keep them away from communities, and reduce large, costly wildfires.