Shoe Fly fire spurs level 3 evacuations in Wheeler County

The summer of 2024 is shaping out to be one of the worst wildfire years in Wheeler County's history.

After local volunteers and firefighters from around the country worked to fight more than 118,000 acres of wildfire from the Lone Rock Fire in the northern part of Wheeler County, the Shoe Fly Fire is now burning at more than 20,000 acres as of press time, with 0% containment.

On Tuesday, the Wheeler County Sheriff's Office ordered Level 3 – Go Now – Evacuations for areas just north of Mitchell to the ghost town of Richmond, near Six Shooter Lane.

The Shoe Fly Fire was started by lightning strikes on Monday, September 2, and was initially reported to the Oregon State Fire Marshal's Office at 200 acres.

But with high winds on Monday night, the fire had exploded and burned some 20,247 acres by Tuesday morning.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal's Office dispatched two structural fire units after the Wheeler County Sheriff's Office issued a Level 2 Evacuation Order for zones east of Mitchell, to Waterman Flat, and north to Richmond.

The Oregon Dept. of Forestry Team 1 was dispatched to the fire and took command over operations on Tuesday at 6 PM. Additional crews were mobilized, and ODF dispatched both air and ground support as the fire spread.

The dry an and hot conditions in grassland areas in Central Oregon have been a tinder box, with fires started by humans and by lightning causes significant damage this year. Like the Lone Rock Fire, the Shoe Fly Fire grew exponentially.

At just after 8:30 AM on Monday, the fire was reported to be burning about 200 acres ,near the Six Shooter Ranch, just off of Highway 207 between Service Creek and Mitchell. But within three hours, the blaze had grown and the first Level 3 Evacuation order was issued. By 8 PM on Monday, the fire had grown to 8,000 acres. Conditions worsened overnight as high winds and more lightning strikes in the area fueld the fire's growth, to approximately 20,247 acres by 10:15 AM on Tuesday. A Type 1 Helicopter and air support have been mobilized.

Another fire was started just north of Service Creek on Tuesday. It is estimated that there were nearly 1,000 lightning strikes on Monday and Tuesday in Central Oregon, according to the Statesman Journal.

Oregon Department of Forestry Public Information Officer Jessica Neujahr said that ODF is monitoring multiple fires in Central Oregon and that their Incident Command had been briefed on Tuesday morning, and given command over the Shoe Fly Fire on Tuesday evening at 6 PM. More updates will be made available as they come at timesjournal1886.com.