Jefferson County, Oregon · Wildfire
| Metric | Last report | Now | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Size |
67,071 acres Aug 9, 7:01 PM
|
4,000 acres
Aug 16, 2:01 PM
−63,071 acres
was 67,071 acres · Aug 9, 7:01 PM
|
−63,071 acres
in 7 days
|
| Containment |
84% Aug 7, 4:00 PM
|
86%
Aug 16, 2:01 PM
+2 percent
was 84% · Aug 7, 4:00 PM
|
+2 percent
in 9 days
|
| Crew size |
396 Aug 9, 5:00 PM
|
208
Aug 16, 2:01 PM
−188
was 396 · Aug 9, 5:00 PM
|
−188
in 7 days
|
| Money spent |
$22.1M Aug 9, 5:00 PM
|
$22.8M
Aug 16, 2:01 PM
+$706,979
was $22.1M · Aug 9, 5:00 PM
|
+$706,979
in 7 days
|
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The Bench Fire is a wildfire near Jefferson County, Oregon. It has burned about 4,000 acres (about 3,000 football fields). Crews have boxed in 86% of its edge; the other 14% isn't contained yet. It was first reported about 3 weeks ago. About 208 people are on it, run by a Complex Incident Management Team. We're also tracking 8 other active fires within about 75 miles.
The size and containment above are current as of Sunday, August 16th at 2:01 p.m. CDT.
Hot, dry, and windy weather can help a fire grow; cool, calm, or wet weather helps crews. The tags below rate each day for fire spread — green is calm, red can push a fire.
A general fire-weather guide (wind matters most, then how dry it is, then heat), not a prediction of what this fire will do.
This Afternoon
86°F · Patchy Smoke
Wind 6 mph N · 1% chance of rain
Tonight
57°F · Mostly Cloudy
Wind 1 to 7 mph NW · 1% chance of rain
Monday
86°F · Patchy Smoke
Wind 1 to 6 mph NE · 5% chance of rain
Monday Night
56°F · Patchy Smoke then Mostly Cloudy
Wind 2 to 6 mph W · 5% chance of rain
Tuesday
87°F · Sunny
Wind 2 to 10 mph W · 0% chance of rain
Forecast from the National Weather Service (weather.gov), pulled Sunday, August 16th at 2:05 p.m. CDT.
About 208 people are assigned to this fire, run by a Complex Incident Management Team. The government rates it a Type 1 Incident (the highest complexity level). About $23 million has been spent on it so far.
The official feed reports the total headcount, not a breakdown by crew type.
We show the daily official picture. For minute-by-minute updates, evacuation orders, and maps, these do it best:
Within about 75 miles we're tracking 8 other active fires, closest first:
Fighting fire is a job you can get
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Most crews hire in fall and winter for the next summer, when more jobs open up.
Oregon has 4 of these jobs open right now.
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