Andrews Forest FIRE UPDATES

Friday, October 16, 2020

10/16/2020

Final Update:

Now that the fall rains have arrived and the Holiday Farm fire is mostly contained, this is the final post to our Fire Updates page. Future new information will be shared via our News and Events.

The Holiday Farm fire ignited the night of September 7, 2020, south of the Andrews Forest. All personnel evacuated safely. We are grateful for the overwhelming support of our community in donating $12K, in only two days’ time, to support displaced Andrews Forest families. Some families were able to return home, while others lost their homes entirely. Our support and thoughts remain with our community and neighbors affected by the fire.

Fire entered the Andrews Forest on September 12, at the south boundary of Watershed 9, and progressed northward into Watershed 1, then Watershed 2. The fire burned mostly at low severity within the Andrews Forest, moving along the ground. We see small areas of canopy tree death in these watersheds, where fire continues to smolder in large snags, logs and roots, and could overwinter as embers to reignite next spring. Our headquarters facility was spared, and the stream gauging stations in the three burned watersheds suffered minor or no damage. Our gratitude goes out to the fire crews who worked diligently to save the research facility and to keep us informed of fire suppression activities on site.

Our attention turns now to assessing the damage from the fire and the fire suppression activities. Fire lines were dug by hand and by bulldozer in Watersheds 1 and 2, along the 1507 and 2633 roads, and around the headquarters. In some places the fire and fire lines impacted permanent vegetation plots that have been studied for 50 years, and through study plots for soil moisture, hydrology, plant phenology, and forest microclimate. Much of the cost of repairing research infrastructure will be the expense of extensive personnel time to relocate and resurvey the damaged areas and reinstall sensors.

As we have learned from our long-term work in the Andrews Forest, many unplanned disturbances happen over time; Watershed 1, for example, experienced extensive toppling of the young forest by heavy snow in the winter of 2019. With each event comes new opportunity to learn about this dynamic landscape. Researchers are working quickly to set up monitoring and studies that will help us learn from the fire, and we have decades of pre-fire data to use as the foundation for comparisons.

To support our work, and our recovery from the fire:

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Access to the Forest:

Access to the Andrews Forest and the fire zone will not be possible before Spring 2021, except in cases of demonstrated urgent need. Research access must go through Mark Schulze or Sherri Johnson and necessary USFS permitting.

THANK YOU for joining us on this journey and for your support!

10/15/2020

USFS staff survey along the handline in WS2. Note the small aluminum tags on the nearby tree trunks, indicating that the fire line cut through one of the vegetation research plots, used since the 1950s to track plant growth and mortality. See full sized.

We've posted a new photo gallery of images that feature fire and fire suppression work in Watershed 2 and along the 1507 road on the Andrews Forest. Small areas of fire continue to smolder in the old-growth stand of Watershed 2, mostly within large snags and downed logs. If recent, nearby Terwilliger fires are a good refrence, we may see embers overwinter and reignite fire next spring.

Large areas of the Willamette National Forest, including the entire Andrews Forest, remain closed. Access to the site and the fire zone will not be possible before Spring 2021, except in cases of demonstrated urgent need. Research access must go through Mark Schulze or Sherri Johnson and necessary USFS permitting.

10/14/2020

Melted remains of what was a fiberglass pole with a hobo temperature sensor on top, one of the 186 distributed temperature stations across the Andrews Forest used to study forest microlimate. See full sized.

Researchers at the Andrews Forest are interested in how forest microclimate influence long-term bird population trends, and whether forest structure (e.g., complex old-growth versus simplified plantations) mediate forest microclimate, with beneficial consequences for climate-sensitive bird species. To get at this question, researchers deployed an extensive network of distributed temperature sensors at 184 stations across the entire Andrews Forest, including in areas that were burned by the recent fire. It turns out that forest structure has a very strong effect on the temperatures experienced by birds within and below the canopy (pub), with old growth being up to 2.5 degrees cooler during the bird breeding season. This climate moderation has consequences for bird distributions and movement (pub), as well as population trends (pub). Because the information on microclimate will be invaluable in studying changes after the fire, and how the birds will respond to the changes in the landscape, researchers will be replacing the numerous distributed temperature stations melted in the fire (see photo). Researchers will now be able to measure how post-fire conditions influence microclimate, but also how bird communities change following the disturbance.

10/13/2020

fire suppression repair — Fire suppression repair work along the 1507 road in the Andrews Forest. View full sized.

With the fire contained and fall rains returning, suppression repair and BAER (Burned Area Emergency Response) efforts are focused on controlling erosion and protecting water quality. Fire crews have been repairing bulldozer tracks along the contingency fire line on road 1507 and the primary line in WS2. Suppression efforts connected segments of the 1507 road with dozer tracks to create a relatively straight fuel break running from the 465 junction to the 1506 road. This line would have been the secondary line of defense if more direct containment lines in Watershed 2 had been unsuccessful.

This week an excavator replaced the soil and vegetation that had been removed from the fire line. The objective is to limit erosion and facilitate long-term recovery. A video of the suppression repair work is on our YouTube Holiday Farm Fire playlist.

10/12/2020

Fire map 10-10-2020 — Map of fire activity and fire perimeter as of October 10. Legend: Scattered heat, opaque yellow; burned area, orange line. Watersheds in the Andrews Forest are outlined in purple. See full sized.

The Holiday Farm Fire is now at 96 percent containment. Steady rains fell over the weekend. The closest Remoted Automated Weather Station (RAWS) station recorded 3 inches of rain since Friday evening. The forecast for the week is for more rain and drizzle through Tuesday, when another ridge of high pressure builds off the coast, bringing a brief period of drying before additional precipitation is expected Friday and Saturday. On Tuesday, command of the incident will be transferred to the USFS McKenzie River Ranger District staff.

Work remains for fire suppression and restoration in Watershed 2 at the Andrews Forest, but due to the conditions and concerns for safety, firefighters will be working cautiously in the area. Even after the rain, areas within Watershed 2 continue to smolder.

10/9/2020

fire in Watershed 2 — Fire continues in Watershed 2. See full sized.

Smoke and ground fire persist in the old growth stand of Watershed 2.

The Holiday Farm Fire is 84% contained and remains at 173,393 acres. Rain is on the forecast, starting at midnight tonight.

10/8/2020

Fire line in Watershed 2 — Fire line and hose in Watershed 2 at the Andrews Forest. See full sized.

The fire continues to burn in Watershed 2. Fire crews are using air drops of water to cool down hot spots. Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) personnel and Andrews Forest personnel are working together to plan for restoration following fire supression activities. In Watershed 2, crews have cut away trees and undergrowth and dug down to expose mineral soil to create hand lines and dozer lines to manage the spread of the fire.

A newly-released Burn Severity Map shows that the Andrews Forest experienced low or very low burn severity--the fire crept along the ground and burned away leaf and branches on the soil.

10/7/2020

Fire in Watershed 2, Oct 6 — Ground fire burns within the old-growth forest of Watershed 2. See full sized.

From Holiday Farm Facebook: "Suppression repair work continues to be an important focus for crews. With the weekend rains predicted, crews are working to ensure water bars are completed. The fire remains the same size at 173,094-acres and is now 80% contained. Fire behavior is expected to diminish as a more seasonal onshore weather pattern develops over the area."

At the Andrews Forest, the fire continues to burn through the old-growth stand in Watershed 2. Crews are installing water bars along fire lines, in anticipation of forecasted rains.

A new video on the Andrews Forest YouTube channel walks viewers through Watershed 1, along the north-facing slope, where the fire burned through the understory.

Andrews Forest headquarters Oct 2 — Andrews Forest headquarters, with smoke lifting from Watershed 2 in the background. Taken Oct 2, USFS. See full sized.

10/6/2020

windspeed data — Windspeed data illustrate the high winds that powered the fire storm that started the night of September 7. View full sized.

From InciWeb: "Firefighters continue to make steady progress on containing the Holiday Farm Fire. Approximately 450 firefighters remain on the ground each day to patrol, mop up, and conduct suppression repair work. The fire remains at 173,094-acres and is 78% contained."

Specific to the Andrews Forest, where Watershed 2 continues to burn: "Fire managers have been monitoring an area on the northeast corner of the fire where it has been too dangerous to put firefighters into. This area is steep and has a lot of snags presenting overhead hazards. The fire has been creeping and smoldering in this area and is posing low risk to the fire line. Helicopters are being used to keep the fire in check by dropping water in the area as needed throughout the day. Smoke may be seen in this area, and fire managers continue to closely monitor it."

Andrews Forest personnel have been collecting data from loggers that were offline during the three-week power outage. Windspeed data from the CENMET climate station paint a clear picture of the huge wind event that powered the fire storm the night of September 7.

The major offshore wind event that fanned the flames of the Holiday Farm Fire was associated with an unusually strong cold air outbreak for this time of year that dropped down east of the Rockies. This high pressure system created strong east-to-northeast winds across Pacific Northwest, especially over the Oregon Cascades. The peak of the wind event occurred on September 8, with speeds at CENMET reaching as high as 15 m/s (33 mph). Winds gradually diminished over the next several days, reverting back to a light and variable pattern.

10/5/2020

looking over Mona ridge into the HJA — This photo looks into the Andrews Forest from the west. In the foreground is burned forest along a ridge in the Mona area, outside of the Andrews Forest, to the west of the Blue River reservoir. Just behind the ridge, on the right edge of the image, is Watershed 9. Moving up the right edge of the frame is Watershed 1, with smaller trees and a few spots of dead tree crowns. The smoky area on the right edge of the frame is Watershed 2. At the back center are Carpenter Mountain and Wolf Rock. Photo from Holiday Farm Facebook page. See full sized.

From the Holiday Farm Fire Facebook page: "A ridge of high pressure that brings warmer and drier air is expected to rebuild over the region beginning today. Firefighters expect to see more smoke inside the fire area as relative humidity drops once again. The Incident Meteorologist is forecasting a significant change in the weather for the upcoming weekend. Forecasting models are showing varying amounts of rain, but measurable precipitation is expected to fall over the fire area beginning on Friday and persisting through the weekend. Through the hard work from firefighters, the incident is now 78% contained."

At the Andrews Forest, the fire continues to burn in Watershed 2, moving downslope towards the gage house. Fire crews are working with Andrews Forest personnel to determine the best course of action that suppresses the fire while minimizing damage to research infrastructure and long-term measurements. Our hydrology photo gallery contains pre-fire-2019 images of the Watershed 2 gage, now in danger of burning, and parts of Watershed 1 which have already burned.

10/4/2020

Fire activity, Oct 3 — Aerial image over the actives fires in Watershed 2 at the Andrews Forest. The Blue River Reservoir is in the distance. Photo from October 3, Holiday Farm Facebook.

From InciWeb: The Holiday Farm Fire is now 173,094-acres and 75% contained. Efforts are moving into suppression restoration work. "This work is led by specially qualified personnel called Resource Advisors. The Resource Advisors on the fire determine areas that need special attention to prevent erosion, or return the area back to its pre-fire condition. Roads that may have seen heavy use will be re-shaped and graded if necessary, and ditches will be cleaned of all debris to ensure they continue to function and minimize erosion on the roadways. Over the weekend, firefighters have seen more active fire behavior on some parts of the fire. This increase is due to the warm and dry weather pattern that has been sitting over the region."

During the last week of warm, dry weather, fire activity has been slow but building within Watershed 2 at the Andrews Forest. The area within Watershed 2 is one of the last active spots of fire on the entire Holiday Farm Fire perimeter. Crews are using bucket drops of water and hand lines to suppress and control the fire's spread so it doesn't reach the Watershed 2 Gage House or cross the 1506 road to headquarters. Aerial images of the entire fire area, including the Andrews Forest, can be seen on the Sentinel Exlporer website: fill in Blue River, Oregon, and navigate from there.

10/2/2020

2:00 PM

melted tree tag — Research infrastructure impacted by the fire includes tree tags, dendrometer bands, and permanent vegetation plot markers. Efforts are already underway to recover or reconstruct damaged tags and bands. See full sized.

The fire burned through three experimental watersheds within the Andrews Forest. Each watershed is home to ongoing research on water, soils, wildlife, and vegetation. The Permanent Sample Plot Program studies long-term dynamics of forest vegetation, with records going back more than 100 years. Over decades, researchers measure plant growth and mortality in specific, marked vegetation plots. In another vegetation study, researchers measure plant phenology: the timing of when plants leaf out in the spring, when they flower, or when they drop their leaves in the fall. Metal bands, called dendrometer bands, fitted around tree trunks, measure changes in the size of the tree over time. Researchers pair the phenology and dendrometer band data with our long-term climate data. Over time, patterns emerge that illustrate how plants are responding to our changing climate.

There are 130 vegetation plots in Watershed 1, two reference stand plots and 14 vegetation plots in Watershed 9, and 3 reference stands and 68 vegetation plots in Watershed 2 that may have burned in the fire. The fire has moved mostly as surface fire, but we won’t know the burn severity and tree mortality in the watersheds until it is safe to survey on the ground. Preliminary assessments found melted plastic tree tags, missing PVC plot markers, and intact metal tree tags. We anticipate a need for additional time and resources to rebuild and re-establish the permanent vegetation plots and phenology sites across the burned area.

As we move forward, the data we collect after the fire, paired with the decades of data from before the fire, will provide valuable insights into plant growth and mortality following a fire. We can look at these data over time and compare trends from the old-growth forest of Watershed 2 and Watershed 9 to the second-growth forest of Watershed 1.

12:00 PM. Hot spots of fire remain in Watershed 2. Air drops of water are being used to cool the smoldering areas until we have significant rains.

Power, internet, and data telemetry have been restored at headquarters. The headquaters webcam and other near-real time phenocams are back online, as are many of the provisional data streams.

10/1/2020

fire over Blue River Reservoir — Aerial image over WS2, looking at the Blue River Reservoir and the saddle dam, and some part of the boat launch/campground. Photo from Holiday Farm Facebook.

From the Holiday Farm Fire InciWeb report: "Hot and dry conditions persisted over the fire area yesterday and are forecasted again for today. Despite the weather conditions and more active fire behavior, the fire stayed in its same footprint, meaning no growth occurred. The fire has burned 173,094 acres. Firefighters continue to make steady progress and it is now 67% contained."

At the Andrews Forest, the fire continues to smolder in Watershed 2. Personnel are working to get climate stations back on telemetry, reconnecting to power, and downloading data. And, now that it's October, staff are winterizing our stream and climate stations.

9/30/2020

air crane drops water on hot spot of fire — An Air-Crane Helicopter drops water on hot spots of fire in Watershed 2. In the right foreground is a tower in our primary climate measurement station (PRIMET), which is located behind the office building at headquarters. View full sized.

From InciWeb: The Holiday Farm fire stands at 173,094 acres and is now 65 percent contained. The weather forecast for today is similar to the forecast yesterday with hot and very dry conditions and light winds. Slightly cooler temperatures and higher relative humidity is called for this weekend.

Road and Willamette National Forest closures remain in place to help provide safety for the public and the firefighters.

At the Andrews Forest, fire is smoldering within Watershed 2, a stand of old-growth forest. Yesterday and today fire crews brought in helicopter air drops of water to cool down the hot spots of fire.

Check out the video of the Air-Crane water drop on the Andrews Forest YouTube channel.

9/29/2020

Fires continue to smolder in the upper portion of Watershed 2 in the Andrews Forest, and in Mona, which is across the 15 road from the Andrews Forest. Fire crews are optimistic that their containment lines will hold. Roughly 350 acres have burned within the Andrews Forest to date. We are turning our attention to getting our long-term measurements back up and running and assessing the impacts of the fire on our research infrastructure.

The size of the Holiday Farm fire stands at 173,094 acres and is now 60 percent contained.

9/28/2020

fire closure map WNF — Holiday Farm Fire closure map for the Willamette National Forest. The closure area includes all of the Andrews Forest. See full sized.

From today's InciWeb report: Fire containment is at 55 percent. The fire has not spread from its current footprint of 173,094 acres in seven days. There are 500 staff working the fire. The weather will continue to turn from warm to hot over the next few days with an east wind component that is expected to stir fire behavior inside the interior of the fire.

Near the Andrews Forest, they are still cutting lines on the SE and NE (HJA/Mona) sides. We will see more smoke with the east wind, but they don’t see any containment issues yet and they expect minimal fire growth.

The Willamette National Forest remains closed, including all of the Andrews Forest and the Blue River watershed.

9/26/2020

burned area on the 15 road near junction with HWY126 — Area burned by high intensity fire, along the 15 road (outside of the Andrews Forest), close to the junction with HWY126. Utility boxes, poles, and lines were burned. Lane Electric is working to restore power to the local community and to the research site. See full sized.

The Holiday Farm Fire facebook site shares the following: "The Holiday Farm Fire is now 45 percent contained. Lingering showers will keep the fire damp today, but a turn to dry, warm weather is on the horizon."

Closer to the Andrews Forest: "Fire crews have been blessed with favorable weather the past three days that has allowed close access to the fire’s edge when building direct fire lines. Much of the line construction work remains on the east side of the fire with heavy mop-up taking place throughout."

We've uploaded a second batch of images from the fire, in our Holiday Farm Fire gallery: newly-uploaded images start at #50. The images capture fire crew activities on site, fire damage to research infrastructure, and areas burned by high-severity fire at the south end of the 15 road, outside of the Andrews Forest boundary.

9/25/2020

bucket drop on Watershed 2 — Bucket drop in Watershed 2. See full sized.

From InciWeb: "Rainy weather continues to help suppression efforts on the Holiday Farm Fire. With some areas of the fire receiving as much as an inch-and-a-half of rain, the level of active fire on the landscape has dropped considerably. The fire remains 173,094 acres and 35 percent contained. Today’s firefighting activity includes continuing to build and improve hand and dozer fire line around the eastern third of the fire’s perimeter and ramping up mop-up operations on the remaining two-thirds."

At the Andrews Forest: Fire crews report that they are using equipment for thinning and for processing small trees. They have chippers coming in to clean up the fuel breaks they created. A type 1 crew from Canada is working on direct line to tie in to the 1510 road to control fire directly west of the Andrews Forest. They are finishing tying in hand line to the 466 road in Watershed 2. Fire was pretty quiet yesterday, but they did do some bucket drops in Watershed 2.

Weather: There has been a total of 1.5 inches of rain on east end of fire so far. Expect another inch today. Hot dry conditions return next week with northeast winds.

9/24/2020

1:00 PM

PRIMET fire line — Fire line around the PRIMET long-term climate measurement station. See full sized.

Fire containment: The whole western edge of the fire from the divisions on the SW half up to the NW half of the perimeter are in mop-up stage. Some personnel are transferring to help in Division Z and A on the east side of the Fire. Division Z, which covers the Andrews Forest, is finishing tying handline into the 1506 road and clearing along 1506 road (the 1506 is the main road through the Andrews Forest, winding along Lookout Creek). Efforts are geared towards providing strong containment in the event that drying from east winds is followed by strong SW winds – not an imminent concern at this point.

Weather: Recorded for yesterday, 0.9 – 1.2 inches of rain on fire, heaviest rain in eastern end (HJA side) this time. Today's showers won’t add up to much, but Friday looks like steady soaking rain with totals up 0.5-1 inch. Rain may continue into Saturday. Fuels are much wetter across the fire area than two weeks ago, so upcoming east wind event is a concern but will not lead to conditions anywhere near the intial conditions when the fire started.

Roads: The broader concern is plugged culverts across the fire zone which may lead to road failure – crews are looking for those situations and trying to resolve as it is safe to do so. Last night’s rain did not lead to much damage on Highway 126, just a few rocks on road. Highway 126 remains closed from milepost 27 to milepost 38, roughly between Vida and Finn Rock.

11:45 AM

This from the Holiday Farm Facebook Page:

cutting fire line at HJA. From Holiday Farm Fire FB page — Cutting fire line at the Andrews Forest. From the Holiday Farm Facebook Page.

"Protecting Science in a Changing World (From Holiday Farm FB page update: 2020-09-23)

The HJ Andrews Experimental Forest is a special place. Located north of Blue River in the Lookout Creek Watershed, it is home to old growth forests and 70 years of long-term research and monitoring on forest disturbance.

The HJ Andrews specializes in understanding big disturbance events, like the unprecedented wildfire and extreme wind event that resulted in the Holiday Farm Fire. It’s clear how we need to think about large fires and their effects on the landscape is changing. The monitoring and data gathering being conducted by the team of researchers at the HJ Andrews will be a central part of that.

But, you can’t do science if your headquarters and monitoring stations get destroyed.

The Holiday Farm Fire burned into the southern portion of the Experimental Forest but, as of Thursday September 24, 2020, the headquarters and other buildings at the compound are unharmed.

All fire teams prioritize the protection of human life and property and the team managing the Holiday Farm Fire is no different. Crews are protecting the buildings and assets on the HJ Andrews like they would any structure, from the lowliest outbuilding to million dollar homes.

Crews have built fire line around the structures at the HJ Andrews, thinned small trees along the roadside and had helicopters dropping water to keep the fire in place for several days.

“We are extremely grateful for the work of the fire crews who went above and beyond to keep the HJ Andrews safe,” says Mark Schultz, Forest Director on the HJ Andrew Experimental Forest.

Schultz, who lives and works at the Experimental Forest, says that while the loss of forests does not compare to losing one’s home, he feels an obligation to help the public understand long-term recovery and fire disturbance.

“Assuming the good work of the fire fighters holds, we are going to be very busy learning from this major disturbance,” says Schultz.

With over 1000 firefighters from 18 states and Canada—plus a good dose of old fashioned fall rains from Mother Nature—it looks like Schultz and his colleagues will soon be back in the business of doing science and making sense of a changing world."

9:30 AM

fire hose and sprinklers at headquarters — Fire hose and sprinklers are set up around the facility. Also note piles of small trees that were cut by fire crews, to widen the defensible space. View full sized.

Headquarters is still intact, after yesterday's wind. Hooray! Fire crews report that our water storage tank is full and ready to flow to the hose and sprinklers that have been set up around the facility, in the event that fire encroaches.

9/23/2020

4:30 PM

Smoke rising from Watershed 2 slope — Smoke rises from hot spots on the slope of Watershed 2. See full sized.

Hot spots of fire that remain in the Andrews Forest are located in the upper portion of Watershed 2. Yesterday, fire crews air-dropped water to cool off the hot spots, ahead of today's forecasted wind.

After fire photo comparision: HWY 126 at the 15 road

Note that this post shows a photo of the fire on September 7 -- NOT what is happening right now.

On September 8, we posted a photo of the fire burning on the south bank of the McKenzie River, at the junction of HYW 126 and the 15 road, taken the night of Sept 7. Here is a side-by-side comparison of that location, during the fire on September 7, and after the fire on September 22.

HWY 126 and 15 Road junction Sept 22 — September 22. Junction of HWY 126 and the 15 Road. See full sized.

HWY 126 and 15 road Sept 7 — September 7. Junction of HWY 126 and 15 Road. See full sized.

11:30 AM

fire impacts in Watershed 1 — Fire impact on the north-facing slope of Watershed 1. See full sized.

First images of the fire, and its impact, are posted in our online Photo Gallery.

11:00 AM

fire crews work fire line at Andrews Forest headquarters — Fire crews widen the fire line around headquarters. View full sized.

According to today's InciWeb Update, the fire stands at 173,094 acres and is now 27 percent contained. "Elevated winds that are expected to arrive in the area early this afternoon will be the first test of containment lines since last week’s thunderstorms. Ridgetops throughout the fire have already undergone significant drying and will be exposed to sustained winds out of the south-southwest up to 20 mph with gusts up to 40 mph. Firefighters have been spending the majority of their time preparing for today’s weather event by strengthening hand and dozer lines and mopping up at least 25 feet into the interior."

Weather: It is already windy with low humidity at higher elevation in the fire area. These conditions should reach lower portions of the fire area by late mining or early afternoon ahead of the rain. The forecast is for at least ¾ of an inch of rain in lower elevations, with higher amounts of rain at higher elevations. Warm and dry conditions are expected to return on the weekend and through next week. A NE wind event is expected on Tuesday, but not an extreme event. Eugene stations are 18 inches below average precipitation on the water year, or about 38%. Season-ending precipitation could be 2-4 weeks away. Windy, hot and dry conditions will test containment lines along the fire.

At the Andrews Forest, extra crews were brought in to strengthen fire lines around headquarters and to tie hand line back into the 1506 road. The main hotspots of the fire are in Watershed 2 and across the Blue River Reservoir in the Mona area. Water drops from helicopters flew over Watershed 2 and Mona yesterday to cool hot spots.

9/22/2020

10:00 PM

Helicopter over HJA headquarters — A Sikorksy Firehawk helicoptor, with a 900 gallon bucket capacity, flies above headquarters at the Andrews Forest. Photo from Holiday Farm Fire facebook page, 9/22/2020.

The Holiday Farm Fire Facebook page has amazing photographs of a helicopter above the Andrews Forest headquarters and the Blue River reservoir. "Today's mission was to cool hotspots behind the HJ Andrews Experimental Forest Long-Term Ecological Research Site. The ship was dipping out of Blue River Reservoir."

Watershed 1: before and after

This pair of photos shows the same place in Watershed 1, before and after the fire.

Watershed after fire, Sept 2020 — Watershed 1, September 2020, with active fire and smoke. See full sized.

Watershed 1 before fire — Watershed 1, June 2008. See full sized.

9:00 PM.

Fire line and sprinker set up behind apartment buildings at headquarters. See full sized.

The Holiday Farm September 22 Briefing details, "Thinning in HJA Andrews, around the compound, preparing that and getting set up for the southwesterly winds."

Staff and crew are running a generator to fill the water tank, to provide water to the sprinklers that are set up around the headquarters.

3:30 PM

Watershed 9 Gage House — Watershed 9 Gage house, still mostly intact, even after fire burned to its base and a tree fell on it. See full sized.

A preliminary assessment brings encouraging news: the stream gages and gage houses in Watersheds 1 and 9 are intact as of this past weekend. The fire burned to the very edge of the gage house in Watershed 1, leaving the ground blackened just up to the building foundation. A tree fell onto the gage house in Watershed 9, but did not damage the building. In Watershed 9, the fire burned the log supporting the sediment basin and some of the underground wiring for our data sensors.

Staff were able to download much of the data from the stream gages in anticipation for uncertain next steps. Looking ahead, researchers will analyze stream flow and stream chemistry to understand how the fire affects the watershed. They have decades of long-term data from these watersheds to use as a baseline.

Fire is still active within Watershed 1 and Watershed 2. The hot shot fire crew from Wyoming is working on the Watershed 2 spot fire and hopes to complete the hand work for the fire line near 1507 road. There may be bucket drops of water in the Andrews Forest and in the Mona Creek area. The rains have helped but there are still some questions as to how quiet the fire is. Crews are preparing for the winds forecasted for Wednesday, ahead of Thursday’s rain, and the east winds forecasted again for next week.

12:30 PM

Fire Crew at HJA — Fire crew member working in the Andrews Forest

Here's a shout out of appreciation to the fire crews and the McKenzie River Ranger District staff who have been working hard to protect the Andrews Forest headquarters from the fire.

10:30 AM

Fire in WS1 — Fire area within Watershed 1. See full sized.

Today's InciWeb report shares that, "Bit by bit, containment on the Holiday Farm Fire continues to grow. Between infra-red flight data and on-the-ground truthing by field observation specialists, the fire now stands at 173,094 acres and 22 percent contained...Firefighters continue to strengthen containment lines in several other areas in advance of the weather system moving in Wednesday that will bring elevated winds out of the southwest. Rain is also expected later in the day on Wednesday."

Fire crews are active within the Andrews Forest, addressing hot spots on the landscape and strengthening defensible lines along roadways.

9/21/2020

10:00 PM

Fire in the Andrews Forest — Active fire along a slope in the Andrews Forest. Taken Sept 19, 2020. See full sized.

Fire crews report working along the 1506 and 130 roads, removing smaller trees along the roadsides to create a wider, more defensible line against the spread of the fire. The 130 road is the entry road into headquarters. Since the power is still out, a generator is being used to pump water into the storage tank in headquarters. The water tank is connected to sprinklers set up across the headquarters area. The sprinklers will be turned on in the event that fire enters the area. Fire continues to burn in hot spots across Watershed 9, Watershed 1, and Watershed 2.

3:00 PM

Fire activity 9/20 — Map of fire activity as of Sept 21, 10:00 AM, focus on edge near the Andrews Forest. Legend: Scattered heat, opaque yellow; Intense heat, solid red, heated perimeter, red line. See full sized.

Fire continues to burn within Watershed 9, Watershed 1, and Watershed 2. There are still areas on the mid slope of the watersheds with a lot of heat and fuels, but there may be openings in the weather for bucket ships to drop water to cool off those areas.

Preparations are continuing on the 1506 road and 400 series roads (these are the roads off 1507 into WS3). Fire crews are tying in the containment line that is using the 1507 road into the 1506 road. They will open up the vegetation along the 1506 road to contain the fire on the far/south side of Lookout Creek, away from headquarters.

Yesterday's InciWeb report includes, “A primary focus today will be near and around HJ Andrews Experimental Forest just outside the northeast corner of the fire’s edge. Depending on weather, smoke and cloud cover, firefighters may be aided by a Type 1 helicopter capable of dispensing up to 3,000 gallons of water with each drop. A total of seven helicopters will be available throughout the fire area if needed."

Today’s InciWeb report states that “An overnight infrared flight of the Holiday Farm Fire revealed the new fire size at 170,637 acres, down by about 2,400 acres due to better mapping. The fire is now 17 percent contained. Firefighting personnel numbers are now at 985….Firefighters are doing all they can to strengthen containment lines and begin mop-up operations in key areas ahead of another weather system moving in Wednesday that will bring elevated winds out of the southwest. Rain is also expected later in the day on Wednesday."

9/20/2020

9:00 PM

Watershed 1 Gage House, with burn and active fire on the far side. Taken Sept 19,2020. See full sized.

Yesterday, September 19, 2020, Andrews Forest personnel were permitted on site to remove essential equipment and to coordinate with fire crews on safety and fire prevention details around the headquarters facility. To date, the headquarters has been spared from the fire, but the fire is only a quarter of a mile away and still active. Fire crews are working the area.

This linked video, of the 1506 road, gives us the first glimpse into what the fire has done within the boundary of the Andrews Forest. Note that the intensity of the fire is mixed within the landscape – in some areas the fire burned through the understory and scorched or took down large trees, while adjacent areas of the forest remain green and unburned.