Gnarl Ridge Fire Update 9-28-08
Incident: Gnarl Ridge Wildland Fire
Released: 9/28/2008
Northwest Oregon Interagency Incident Management Team
Carl West, Incident Commander
Gnarl Ridge Fire Daily Update
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The Gnarl Ridge Fire stayed within its boundaries Saturday, but heat in the Tilly Jane and Eliot drainages caused firefighters to call for assistance from water-dropping helicopters. Warming and drying conditions with increasing winds from the east are expected to continue for three more days. This trend is causing the fire to burn more actively throughout the day and night. Firefighters are continuing mop-up during the night to reduce the chance of flare-ups challenging the firelines.
On Saturday, fire crews cleaned retardant off equipment that was parked near Cloud Cap Inn during the height of fire activity last week. They will begin washing down the historic Cloud Cap Inn today.
A helicopter equipped with forward-looking Infrared sensors will be flying the Gnarl Ridge Fire today in order to identify areas with hidden residual heat.
Members of a Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team begin arriving today. They will assess conditions on the fire line and make recommendations regarding rehabilitation and erosion prevention measures that can be immediately implemented. .
Some of the on-going fuel reduction work along Forest Road 3512 to Cloud Cap and Tilly Jane includes chipping of small trees, branches, and shrubs that were cut during fire line construction. Chipping will reduce the fire threat while providing some erosion control.
On Friday the Level 2 and 3 Evacuation Notices for the Cooper Spur vicinity were reduced to Evacuation Level 1. Cooper Spur Road was reopened to the public. Due to continuing fire activity, however, all other roads near the fire are closed to public traffic. These roads include the 3512 road, which accesses Cooper Spur Ski Area, Cloud Cap Inn, and Tilly Jane Campground, and the road to Laurance Lake. Drivers using the Cooper Spur Road are advised to use extreme caution because of heavy use by fire traffic.
Fire at a Glance (9/28/08)
Size: 3285 acres
Cause: Lightning on August 7th.
Location:
18 miles south of Hood River, OR and 7 miles south of Parkdale, OR
Evacuations: None
Containment: 60%
Expected Containment: 10/15/2008
Crews and Equipment:
Dozers: 3
Crews: 7 Type 1
12 Type 2
Helicopters: 2 Type 1 (Heavy Lift)
1 Type 2 (Medium Lift)
2 Type 3 (Light)
Engines: 29
Total personnel: 769
Closures:
For complete closure information, please see Page 2 of this update.
Contact Us:
For additional information, please contact us at the Gnarl Ridge Incident Command Post (ICP), Hood River County Fairgrounds, daily from 7am-9pm, at (541) 354-1836.
Additional Gnarl Ridge fire information is available online at http://www.inciweb.org/.
EMERGENCY FIRE CLOSURE
Until further notice the following campgrounds, trails and roads on the Mt. Hood National Forest
are closed due to activity from the Gnarl Ridge Fire:
- Tilly Jane Campground
- Cloud Cap Campground
- Kinnikinnick Campground (Laurance Lake)
- Little John Sno·Park
- Red Hill Road #16 and associated spurs
- Cloud Cap Road #3512
- Forest Road 3520 and associated spurs
- Forest Road 2840 and associated spurs (Laurance Lake Road)
- Forest Road 3511 and associated spurs
- Forest Road 1811
- Forest Road 1810-640
- Timberline Trail #600 from the intersection with the Newton Creek Trail #646 north and west to intersection with the McGee Creek Trail #627
- East Fork Trail #650
- Bluegrass Ridge Trail #647
- Cooper Spur Trail #600-B
- Elk Meadows Trail #645 north of the intersection with the Newton Creek Trail
- Elk Meadows Perimeter Trail#645-A
- Lamberson Spur Trail #644
- Gnarl Ridge Trail #652
- Polallie Ridge #643
- Tamanawas Falls Trail #650-A
- Tamanawas Tie Trail #650-B
- Wagon Road #642
- Tilly Jane Trail #448
- Tilly Jane Trail #600-A
- Tilly Jane Trail #643
- Elk Cove Trail #631
- Pinnacle Ridge Trail #639
- Vista Ridge Trail # 626
- Mazama Trail #625 (a.k.a. Cathedral Ridge Trail)
For additional closure information please contact the Hood River Ranger District, during business hours, Monday through Friday, at 541-352-6002.
