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To contact me, please click here: Rep.EdDiehl@oregonlegislature.gov
Hello Friends,
This morning, I received a letter from Kyle Williams, Deputy Director of Fire Operations. The Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) has completed its investigation into the 2020 Labor Day Santiam Canyon Wildfire Event, which involved 19 reported fires within the North Cascade District. The investigation found that seven fires were caused by downed powerlines but were quickly suppressed and did not contribute to the spread of larger wildfires. The remaining 12 fires were determined to be caused by embers from the Beachie Creek Fire, which was under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Forest Service. No evidence of other causes of fire spread within the Santiam Canyon was identified.
While ODF’s investigations aim to determine liability to recover suppression costs, federal immunity prevents cost recovery from fires originating on federal land. The scale and complexity of the investigation, which involved thousands of documents and over 180 interviews, posed significant challenges for ODF.
ODF is continuing to finalize reports on other 2020 wildfires as cost recovery litigation are ongoing.
Here is the full letter:
"Good morning Legislators,
Starting Labor Day 2020, an extreme east-wind event resulted in the Oregon Department of Forestry suppressing several major wildfires that burned over a million acres from Southwest Oregon up to Northwest Oregon. The department is statutorily required to investigate every fire that ignited on ODF-protected lands and therefore the department investigated roughly 18 large incidents in Oregon that occurred during the “Labor Day” time frame. After nearly five years of information collection and analysis, the Oregon Department of Forestry has completed the 2020 “Santiam Canyon Wildfire Event” investigation report, which was one of the 18 fire events (large fires or geographically clustered fires) that took place over Labor Day week of 2020.
The Santiam Canyon Wildfire Event is comprised of 19 reports of fire (individual fires) located within the protection boundaries of ODF’s North Cascade District. Five investigators, internal to the department and contracted by ODF, were tasked with investigating all known and reported ignitions in the Santiam Canyon within ODF’s North Cascade District jurisdiction with the goal of creating impartial and objective determinations. The investigation team reviewed thousands of pages of documentation, written statements and conducted over 180 interviews with witnesses. These types of investigations are thankfully rare for the agency, although becoming increasingly more common. Investigations of this complexity put extreme strain on the agency, past and present, and unfortunately it took longer than even we expected. The scale of work that the investigators were tasked with was massive. Cause and origin scene work, large numbers of witness interviews, collection and examination of potential physical evidence, review of extensive documentation and utilization of experts for 19 individual reports of fire requires meticulous organization and attention to detail.
The investigation has concluded seven of the individual fires were caused by downed powerlines but were determined to not contribute to the spread of large fires in the Santiam Canyon. These seven ignitions were suppressed by residents and/or other fire personnel.
The remaining 12 reports of fire were determined to be caused by embers from the Beachie Creek Fire. The Oregon Department of Forestry did not investigate the Beachie Creek Fire because the U.S. Forest Service has jurisdiction over that fire, and it’s cause and origin determination.
There is no evidence of other causes of the fire spread within the Santiam Canyon.
ODF’s investigations are designed to objectively determine if someone is liable for a fire on ODF protected land to recoup fire suppression costs and reduce the economic impact of a wildfire on Oregon taxpayers. Regardless of the finding that 12 of the fires in the Santiam Canyon resulted from embers from the Beachie Creek fire, ODF cannot recover suppression costs expended on ODF protected lands from fires originating on federal government lands. The federal government has sovereign immunity against lawsuits unless it chooses to waive immunity, as it has under the Federal Tort Claims Act. However, per a 9th Circuit ruling, the Act only allows suits for property damage, injury or death, and fire suppression costs do not fall into one of those categories.
The department recognizes that this has been a long-anticipated report and that there are still several other reports from the 2020 Labor Day Fires that the public would like to see. The remaining reports are currently undergoing cost collection litigation to recoup firefighting costs and reduce financial impacts on taxpayers. ODF cannot divulge the details of other ongoing investigations or litigation.
Thank you, and please let Derrick Wheeler, myself, or the team from ODF know if you have any questions."
Kyle Williams
Deputy Director – Fire Operations
Oregon Department of Forestry
Yours truly,
 Representative Ed Diehl
House District 17
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1417
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, H-378, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Rep.EdDiehl@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/diehl
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