Lonerock Fire mostly contained, crews depart for other fires

The Lonerock Fire was brought under control after a harrowing two weeks that tested federal, state, and local fire response.

As of press time, the fire is at 77% containment and has burned 137,221 acres.

For many local volunteers who worked days on end to protect homes and property, some much-needed sleep and time with family awaits. For firefighters, it is off to the next blaze – as Oregon and Washington are now using half of the nation's firefighting crews.

As of July 28, the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center for Wildfires (NWCC) says that 1,200,466 acres have burned in Oregon wildfires. Of those, 750,061 acres have been started by humans, and 450,405 acres have been started by lightning.

There are more than 1,261 fires in Oregon in 2024, but 71 fires have been large firest of more than 100 acres of timber or 300 acres of range and brush fires.

Fueled by a wet spring and early summer rains, fire conditions became severe as an extremely hot July dried out vegetation.

Fire officials say that the size of fires currently burning in Oregon are not unprecedented, but that they are happening in July is an anomaly. And with firefighting crews stretched to the limit, there is concern that August and September could test wildfire response.

At a second community meeting in Fossil on July 27, Chris Dowling with the US Forest Service told attendees that 55 fires are considered a significant threat in the northwest, with 44 of them being in Oregon.

"We have almost half of the firefighting force in the nation here in Washington and Oregon," said Chris Dowling with the US Forest Service.

Fire officials spoke of the complexities they faced when fighting the Lonerock Fire. Beyond challenging terrain and weather was the mix of federal forest, state land, and private property. The result was a multi-agency response that required significant coordination.

As the fire moved from southern Gilliam County into Wheeler County, the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), US Dept. of Forestry, US Dept. of State, and rural fire protection districts in Wheeler County worked to fight the fire, with dozens of local volunteers.

At its peak, some 1,011 firefighters from multiple agencies fought the Lonerock Fire.

"We had support from the Northwest Team 2, we had support from WC Ranches, Spray Fire, the community residents and landowners – it was an all hands on deck," said Dustin Gustaveson with the Oregon Department of Forestry.

As the fire has gained containment, fire crews are beginning to leave the area and to work on other fires – notably the Monkey Creek Fire that began near Ukiah and which is now burning at 173,511 acres.

The good news locally is that the Lonerock Fire is largely contained and nearly a quarter inch of rain fell in Wheeler County on Monday night.

Still, there is a long road ahead.

Undersheriff Mitch Elliott with the Wheeler Co. Sheriff's Office said that all Level 3 Evacuations were cleared to Level 2 as of Saturday, July 27. Still, there will be a considerable amount of mop-up duties, "as this fire continues for months, we need to stay vigilant," he said.

Some fire officials say that things could have gotten much worse and were counting their blessings at the second Fossil community meeting.

"A week ago looking at this fire, I didn't think we'd be here today," said Dustin Gustaveson with the Oregon Dept. of Forestry. "This was a complex fire, with lots of jurisdictions and it's been fast moving."

Wheeler Co. Deputy Sheriff and Spray Fire Chief Jeremiah Holmes thanked the various agencies and firefighters, but said that local volunteers made the difference.

"The community was instrumental and the backbone of getting this fire shut down," said Sgt. Holmes.

"There were local ranches up on Kahler Basin that were running dozers, and some from Alder Creek... we had volunteer dozers that came and individuals from the community that knew how to fight fire... It takes a community for something like this," he said.

Beyond finishing the job and working to address flare-ups, locals are starting to look at the loss of property and insurance support.

With timber, livestock, structures, and pastures burned it is likely that there will be tens of millions of dollars in damages.

The Wheeler Soil and Water Conservation District, along with the Gilliam Soil and Water Conservation District, are working to help landowners who have experienced loss.

Working with USDA and NRCS office in Condon which represents both Gilliam and Wheeler counties, the NRCS has developed a packet with emergency funding opportunities.

Cassi Newton with the Wheeler SWCD says that no funds have been distributed yet, but her office is working hard to make those funds available.

Herb Winters at the Gilliam SWCD has also been working with his NRCS colleagues on support funds and services.

Newton says she is hoping to start meeting with landowners as soon as possible. USDA's support through the NRCS could help reimburse impacted landowners who lost feed or forage for livestock, as well as support for fence lines that burned, or cows that had to be transported out of the fire's path.

"I will be out distributing the packet and will hand deliver it to property owners at the perimeter of the fire," Newton said.

For landowners that were already working through NRCS programs, such as the juniper removal program, Newton is working to shift funds to meet other priorities.

"If juniper removal was part of the project, we could shift that to seeding for native plants, or to address noxious weeds," she said. "We're working with those landowners to see what damage was done and to see which components might need an amendment to recover from the fire."