Crime & Safety
Oregon Wildfire Forces Prime Eclipse-viewing Spot To Evacuate
Fire crews haven't contained any part of the wildfire. The McKenzie Pass Highway 242 has been closed between Highway 126 and Sisters.
SISTERS, OR — As roughly a million people flock to Oregon to see Monday's total solar eclipse, a wildfire in the Deschutes National Forest forced more than 400 homes in a prime eclipse-viewing spot to evacuate.
The nearly 11-square-mile wildfire was about six miles west of the town of Sisters, which sits on the southern edge of the 70-mile swath of Oregon where the moon will completely blot out the sun. Residents were ordered to evacuate late Friday afternoon, threatening to cause even more tie-ups on rural and narrow roads already expected to be burdened with up to 200,000 visitors.
Sisters will see 34 seconds of totality and was a popular tourist destination before the eclipse gripped the nation's attention. But heavy smoke and the rapidly growing flames forced officials to close nearby campsites, recreational areas and roads. Fire crews have not been able to contain any part of the wildfire and the McKenzie Pass Highway 242 has been closed between Highway 126 and Sisters, said Susie Heisey, a public information officer with Central Oregon Dispatch.(For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)
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The Oregon Office of State Fire Marshall Office brought engines from Marion & Multnomah Counties 2 help w/structure protection on #millifire pic.twitter.com/rZbFP9YwVm
— Central OR Fire Info (@CentralORFire) August 18, 2017
The closures will likely have a big impact on people traveling through the region for the eclipse, she said, and the risk is high for more conflagrations in the area with so many campers.
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"There's absolutely no campfires allowed and no burning allowed. So we're just hoping that everyone that's here to enjoy the eclipse" follows the rules, Heisey said.
Nearly two dozen other fires are also burning in Oregon, including nine more in the best eclipse-viewing zone. Large portions of the Mount Jefferson Wilderness, in central Oregon's Willamette National Forest, are also closed.
Here's a #timelapse of the #MilliFire near Sisters. We spoke with a few folks evacuated today and they say this is tough to watch. pic.twitter.com/TNwBAAehWI
— John Hendricks (@JohnKPTV) August 19, 2017
GILLIAN FLACCUS, Associated Press
Photos credit:Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard via AP; Andy Tullis /The Bulletin via AP; Kurt Wilson/The Missoulian via AP