Central Oregon Wildfire Grows to More Than 60,000 Acres

Oregon’s governor declared a state of emergency Wednesday as the Cram fire spread to more than 64,000 acres, fueled by high temperatures, gusty winds and low humidity.

More than 200 people in two counties remained under evacuation orders or warnings. Officials said that the fire was threatening about 430 structures, including nearly 300 homes.

Gov. Tina Kotek of Oregon said in her emergency proclamation that the state was 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.

At least seven large wildfires were burning across Oregon on Wednesday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The largest, the Cram fire, has spread rapidly in an area northeast of Madras in central Oregon since it was first reported Sunday.

Gusty, shifting winds and hot weather have fanned the fire, which was burning grass, timber and brush east of U.S. Route 97, a north-south highway, near the sparsely populated area of Willowdale in Jefferson County.

The fire grew overnight Wednesday to 64,295 acres from 41,377 acres and was zero percent contained, according to an incident update issued by Central Oregon Fire Info. No injuries or fatalities have been reported, said Simone Cordery-Cotter, a spokesperson for the Oregon state fire marshal’s office. Officials haven’t started a damage assessment, she said, adding that “all of our resources are going to full suppression” of the fire.

Fire crews were patrolling the western flank of the fire, where “residential areas and key infrastructure” remained at risk, according to Central Oregon Fire Info. Firefighters also were working to protect threatened structures along the southern edge of the fire, according to the update.

Parts of Jefferson and Wasco counties remained under evacuation orders Wednesday, and residents in other areas of those counties were advised to be prepared to evacuate.

The smoke from the fire was also contributing to bad air quality in nearby communities, including Bend, Redmond and Madras.

Efforts to contain the blaze have been complicated by the steep terrain and shifting winds, and officials said they expected the fire to continue to grow through Wednesday.

Above normal fire activity is expected in Oregon through September, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

When the Cram fire started, Oregon officials said, it was the sixth time this summer that a fire threat had exceeded the capacity of local firefighters to manage it, forcing the state to activate its Emergency Conflagration Act, officials said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.