Fire crews fan out to tackle scattered, remote blazes.

Byline: Susan Palmer The Register-Guard

Dozens of small fires burning in rugged remote terrain kept more than 1,000 firefighters busy on the Willamette and Deschutes national forests on Saturday. While fire lines have been cut around some of the lightning-caused blazes, it could be the first week of September before they are contained.

On the Middle Fork Complex near Oakridge, 576 firefighters and support crew members are tackling a cluster of more than 60 fires burning on about 200 acres spread across 500,000 acres of steep remote terrain, said Roland Emetaz, spokesman for the Central Washington Interagency Incident Management team supervising the firefighting effort on the Willamette forest.

"The logistics of this particular event are horrendous because the fires are so scattered," Emetaz said. "The drive to some of them is several hours."

In some cases, helicopters are ferrying crews to the blazes with firefighters rappeling to the ground, he said. Helicopters also are being used to drop water on the fires. "They're invaluable in a situation like this," he said.

Three small fires are burning within miles of Oakridge, but none of them pose an immediate threat, Emetaz said. The closest one, about 2 miles south, is 10 acres in size.

"We've had it staffed all day and there are no concerns. We've got a pretty good handle on it," he said.

No camping or hiking trails on the Middle Fork District had been closed as of Saturday evening, Emetaz said.

Despite the challenges, crews are making headway, thanks to a lack of wind.

"We had a really good day even though it was fairly warm and dry," he said.

The complex is 25 percent contained with full containment expected by Sept. 4.

Meanwhile, near Sisters, the Summit Springs Complex of three fires burned about 10 miles north of town on a total of almost 2,000 acres, with 896 firefighters and support crews working it.

Warm weather and low humidity fed the flames, but low winds kept them from spiraling out of control, and the fires grew by only about 40 acres, said Paul Ries, a spokesman with the Oregon Department of Forestry.

"There's a line around all three of the fires. and they're mopping up hot spots," Ries said.

The 173-acre Canyon Stevens Fire had been burning within a mile of six homes and 12 outbuildings, but that fire hasn't grown so for now the structures aren't threatened, Ries said.

The lack of wind also made it easier for firefighters to locate hot spots and lightning holdovers - small fires smouldering but not obvious during last week's cooler weather.

Five such fires flared up in the Summit Springs Complex, ranging from 1 to 11 acres, but crews quickly tackled them, Ries said.

The wildfire has prompted closure of Forest Service roads four miles north of Camp Sherman, and the Lower Bridge Campground also has been closed.

The Summit Springs Complex is 45 percent contained and officials expect it will be completely contained by Sept. 1.

Statewide, 10 wildfires are burning on 15,649 acres.