Oklahoma officials call for public’s help, declare No Burn Days

Oklahoma state fire and emergency management officials have declared April 13 and 14 “No Burn” days—and they mean it.

The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry provided an update on the four fire situations across western Oklahoma that began April 12 and were ongoing overnight. The Oklahoma Forestry Services Daily Fire Situation Report said very strong burning conditions in western Oklahoma overnight April 12 caused fires to spread. Numerous evacuations have been established and are ongoing in northwest Oklahoma in light of an extremely complex fire environment in place April 13. A forecasted cold front is expected to impact ongoing fires, and may lead to new fires. A Red Flag Warning is in place with a dry line pushing eastward.

Todd Lindley, with the National Weather Service, Norman, Oklahoma, stressed to the public the extreme conditions that northwest Oklahoma will see April 13 and 14 could lead to more fires if citizens aren’t careful.

“We will see relative humidity in the 10 to 15 percent range, pushing into central Oklahoma into the afternoon (April 13),” Lindley said. “We may see 25 to 30 mph upwards of 30 to 35 mph winds across west central and southwest Oklahoma. That coupled with the present excessive drought across western Oklahoma where many areas have gone 185 days without a quarter-inch of rainfall means we have extremely critical and historic fire weather.” The combination of low relative humidity, high winds and drought are a perfect condition for fires to start and spread fast.

Mark Goeller, OFS chief, detailed the status of the current active fire incidents.

• 34 Complex: A complex of several active fires in Woodward County and to the northern state border, from Highway 34 to Highway 50. Spans roughly 115,000 acres. Started at Highway 34. Fire burned through the night and crews from local fire departments and county task forces as well as the OFS are working to bring under control. Crews face complications from weather today. Reports of structures and power lines lost. Damage assessments are beginning today with daylight.

OFS has brought in a couple Type 1 incident management teams to assist with the organization and resource management.

• Rhea Fire: Located in Dewey County, this fire burned 82,000 acres, a swath 25 miles long and 5 miles wide. This burned across the Canadian River and on toward Woodward up to U.S. Highway 270. The fire moved into the town of Vici and both it and the town of Mutual were evacuated. There have been structures lost, but assessments will begin today.

Goeller told reporters that of the three reported lost turkey hunters, two were found yesterday and the third was just found overnight and was life-flighted to a burn center for treatment. He could not report on the hunter’s condition status at this time.

A Type 2 incident management team is expected to arrive April 14 because of the size of the fire and its problematic behavior.

Today, fire-fighting aircraft were ordered up to work early the morning of April 13 before fire conditions would preclude their use. Goeller explained that with high winds and low relative humidity, the aircraft cannot fly safely, nor will their fire retardants be useful.

“With low relative humidity, when they drop water or retardants, it isn’t effective,” Goeller said. “So we’re trying to get them up and reduce the impact on Vici and Mutual.”

• Roadside Fire: Located in Woodward County, this fire burned 1,500 acres and has been caught, and mop-up is now beginning in earnest. Crews will work to maintain control in light of the weather conditions expected.

• Shaw Fire: Located in Roger Mills County, this started on private land north of Regan and spread into the Black Kettle National Grassland, burning 3,500 acres. It has been 25 percent contained and crews are on the scene today. Resources should be released today so that they are available for any potential fires that crop up.

Goeller said management resources are being gathered from far and wide to respond to the fires.

In addition to the in-state management teams in place, there are resources from the Southern Forest Fire Compact to help oversee the fire response. They include Type 6 engines, commonly known as brush pumpers, as well as a suppression group from Tennessee that came in overnight to assist. The Oklahoma Army National Guard is on state active duty and is positioned in Lexington and Tulsa to respond if needed.

In Woodward, there are two Type 1 helicopters and three heavy air tankers that can be called up. Goeller said there’s an order for two CF-14s to work in Dewey and Woodward counties to scoop water off of the lakes to use in fighting the fire.

“Our state and local municipal fire departments are on high alert today,” Goeller stressed. “It is possible we could see an event similar to that of April 2009’s fire outbreak that burned 300,000 acres in one day.”

The Oklahoma Governor’s Office is expected to implement emergency declaration for 52 counties west of Highway 75 in Tulsa to prepare the public for fire emergencies.

“It is critical that we try to minimize human-caused ignitions,” Goeller said. “We know that there are accidental ignitions from power lines arcing. But make the decision to not grill outside, to check your trailer chains that they aren’t hitting the pavement and sparking. Don’t burn brush today.” Resources are already deployed to the western part of the state to fight the fires on the ground now, and the public can help by trying to keep new ones from starting in other parts of the state and further stretch those resources. 

Jennifer M. Latzke can be reached at 620-227-1807 or [email protected].