Oregon wildfire emergency closes about 70 miles of interstate; Huntington under evacuation order
A fast-moving wildfire near Oregon’s border with Idaho closed approximately 70 miles of a major interstate and placed the city of Huntington under a Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation order, according to an Associated Press report published July 27.
The Fox Fire was burning about 12 miles northeast of Huntington, near the Oregon-Idaho state line. The reported closure and evacuation order underscore the immediate transportation and community risks from the fire in eastern Oregon.
Firefighters were building bulldozer lines and working to protect homes, a railroad and other critical infrastructure, the AP reported. The available reporting did not provide a current containment percentage for the Fox Fire or a time for the interstate to reopen.
Huntington evacuation and interstate closure
Huntington residents were under a Level 3 evacuation order, described in the report as “Go Now.” The order applies to Huntington; it does not mean that all of Oregon is under evacuation.
The interstate closure covered approximately 70 miles. The source packet does not identify a reopening schedule, so travelers and residents should not treat the closure as having a confirmed end time.
The fire’s location near the state line and northeast of Huntington is central to the response: crews were confronting a fire close enough to require evacuation action while also protecting transportation and infrastructure assets in the area.
Firefighters focus on homes, railroad and infrastructure
Response work included bulldozer lines, which the AP reported as part of efforts around the fire. Crews also were protecting homes, a railroad and other critical infrastructure.
The report establishes those protection efforts, but it does not state that the Fox Fire was contained or that the interstate had reopened. It also does not provide a revised evacuation status beyond Huntington’s Level 3 order.
Those distinctions matter because an interstate closure, an evacuation order and active protection work describe conditions and response actions reported at the time; they do not establish a final outcome for the fire.
Separate state action for the Hagen Fire
The Fox Fire is separate from the Hagen Fire in Umatilla County. On July 21, Gov. Tina Kotek invoked Oregon’s Emergency Conflagration Act for the Hagen Fire, according to the Office of the Governor.
That declaration allows the Oregon State Fire Marshal to mobilize resources through the Oregon Fire Mutual Aid System. The declaration is a state emergency-response action for the Hagen Fire and should not be read as a declaration that merges the two fires into one incident.
The state action identifies a mechanism for drawing on mutual-aid firefighting resources for the Umatilla County fire. The source packet does not provide a later deadline, containment figure or final resolution for either the Hagen Fire or the Fox Fire.
What remains unknown
As of the available reports, there was no stated reopening time for the approximately 70-mile interstate closure and no current containment percentage for the Fox Fire. The reporting also does not establish any change to Huntington’s reported Level 3 evacuation order.
For the Hagen Fire, the confirmed next response mechanism is the state fire marshal’s ability to mobilize mutual-aid resources under the July 21 Emergency Conflagration Act declaration. The available sources do not provide a further scheduled public deadline or a final status for that separate fire.
Sources
- Major Oregon interstate closed for 70 miles due to wildfire, Associated Press
- Governor Kotek Invokes Conflagration Act for Hagen Fire, Office of the Governor of Oregon