PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Burning nearly 65,000 acres as of Wednesday morning, the Cram Fire in Central Oregon is threatening a nearby correctional facility in Jefferson County, according to the sheriff.
Jefferson County Sheriff Jason Pollock told KOIN 6 News rapidly changing conditions have caused the inferno to change directions multiple times since it started Sunday, making it difficult to stop its spread.
“Our biggest concern is it crossing Highway 97,” he said. “We’re worried about the Madras area and Deer Ridge Correctional Facility.
“With the way this fire has been moving, it’s really unpredictable on where it’s going to land,” Pollock continued. “It’s picking up embers and dropping them, and we’ve been getting spot fires.”
As of Wednesday morning, the fire was 0% contained and about a mile away from the correctional facility.
So far, there has been one confirmed structure lost in the Cram Fire, and officials are still working to find out if any others have been lost.
Pollock said that the cause of the fire may have been a transformer that blew along Highway 97 in the Willowdale area north of Madras.
“It just kind of took off to the southeast, originally, and then it shifted southwest,” he said.
The terrain in Jefferson County is steep and dry, which has been a challenge for firefighters to access certain areas. Winds also swept through the area earlier in the week, causing the fire to shift directions and for the evacuations routes to change with little notice.
Nearly 300 residents are currently in the level 3 evacuation zone, which means leave now, according to Oregon State Fire Marshal spokesperson Gert Zoutendijk.
“We anticipate that those might go up again, depending on the fire where it goes and where it’s going to travel,” Zoutendijk said, who also added that resources for the fire are adequate as of Wednesday, but signaled that could change at any time this fire season.
Overall, the fire has impacted ranches, farms and grazing land. But it also moved through the 30-home community of Ashwood, and fast-changing conditions could put even more structures at risk.
“The last two days it bumped up by 20,000 acres. It could be in a more populated area at any time,” Zoutendijk said.
KOIN reached out to the Oregon Department of Corrections, which oversees the Deer Ridge Correctional Facility. We have not yet heard back and will update this story if we do.
On Wednesday, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek announced a State of Emergency as fire season ramps up.
“Oregon is already experiencing a devastating wildfire season that will have lasting consequences. The summer is only getting hotter, drier, and more dangerous – we have to be prepared for worsening conditions,” Kotek said in a statement.
Stay with KOIN 6 News as this story develops.
