Following a two-week mobilization to Southern California to assist with the wildfire response – the largest out-of-state deployment in Oregon history – the state’s 21 strike teams arrived home last week, including two from Lane County.
Oregon strike teams battled the Palisades and Eaton fires near Los Angeles, including Eugene-Springfield and Pleasant Hill-Goshen firefighters. According to the Oregon State Fire Marshal, it mobilized 370 firefighters, 105 fire engines, and water tenders.
Powerful winds ignited the Eaton Fire hours after the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7 near a canyon in the national forest lands north of downtown Los Angeles. According to Cal Fire, 14,021 acres had since burned, and was 99% contained at press time.
The agency also reported that 9,418 structures were damaged or destroyed in the blaze. On Jan. 21, the L.A. County Medical Examiner confirmed 27 deaths as a result of the fires.
Andrew Smith, chief of Pleasant Hill Goshen Fire & Rescue, said that both strike teams from Lane County returned home on Jan. 25.
“Our crews are happy to be home,” Smith said. “We had two units from our agency deployed, including an engine crew with four personnel and a tender with two personnel. All are home safe and healthy and ready for a rest break.”
The crews arrived home in time for Fire Season Appreciation Day. Dedicated in 2007 by the Oregon Legislature, Jan. 27 honors Oregon firefighters who devote their lives to protecting our communities.
“And this year, we also celebrate the heroic efforts of Oregon’s strike teams who just returned from California, where they assisted in battling historic wildfires,” Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said in a news release.
Wayne Morris, ESF battalion chief, said his team is home safely after battling the Palisades Fire.
“During their time there, the primary focus was structural protection (protecting houses from fire) and “mop up” which is moving into burned areas to ensure the fire is out and no errant embers cause new fires,” said “The crew was involved in medical treatment of one firefighter who recovered without issue. Everyone from ESF returned safely. We sent one fire engine with a crew of four firefighters.”
He said that, upon return, ESF crews take time to restore and clean their equipment before heading home to be with their families before returning to their usual shift schedule at their assigned station.
Morris, reflecting on the teamwork his crew experienced with California counterparts and other firefighters across the states, “The ability to bring so many different crews together from different departments highlights the tenacity and adaptability of the American fire service. Deployments like this provide our crews with invaluable experience that they can bring back to our department.”
The strike teams sent to California by the State Fire Marshal were requested through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. This compact provides help during governor-declared emergencies or disasters by allowing states to send personnel, equipment, and supplies to support response and recovery efforts in other states. California will reimburse the strike teams’ expenses directly.
“I am immensely proud of the work firefighters from the Oregon Fire Service and the Oregon Department of Forestry have done over the last two weeks in California,” Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. “Their dedication and professionalism have made a meaningful difference for the communities affected by these devastating fires. The willingness of our firefighters to step up and provide critical aid, often in challenging and dangerous conditions, is a testament to the strength and resilience of Oregon’s fire service.”
South Lane Fire & Rescue personnel said they did not deploy firefighters to assist in the fires.