Last week, I joined Governor Brown and officials from the Oregon Department of Forestry, Office of the State Fire Marshal, Oregon Military Department and the Department of Environmental Quality to give a press briefing about the upcoming wildfire season.

Just as wildfire impacts all Oregonians, it requires a holistic approach for prevention, response and recovery. Wildfire threatens life safety and communities; it causes economic impacts to consumers and businesses; it endangers our state’s natural resources; and it disproportionately affects vulnerable populations. Working together to leverage our resources is key in our fight to prevent wildfires and minimize the threat in Oregon.

Despite a rainy spring, the most recent drought monitor map for Oregon shows the ongoing drought is worse than this time last year, indicating yet another challenging wildfire season ahead. As we head into the summer months, 15 counties have received drought emergency declarations - the highest and earliest number of emergency drought declarations issued during Brown’s time as governor. The proactive stance these counties have taken helps us better position ourselves for the reality we must face together. 

We’ve witnessed Oregon’s wildfire activity steadily increase over the past decade, with more fires burning hotter, in areas that historically haven’t burned, and with fire season becoming a year-round event. New data research released by the non-profit research group First Street Foundation shows that within the next 30 years, more than 1.1 million properties — 61% of all properties — in the state may see some risk of being affected by wildfire.

Oregon’s legislature has clearly demonstrated its support of preparing for and mitigating wildfire risk by investing in several response agencies. From subsidizing additional resources for ODF as outlined in Senate Bill 762, to standing up OEM and OSFM as their own respective departments, to funding additional positions within our own agency to better support the emergency management structure in Oregon, the priority is clear: Together, we are collectively investing in a safer and stronger Oregon.

Take care of yourselves and take care of each other.
Andrew Phelps, Director, Oregon Office of Emergency Management

The 2018 Substation Fire impacted 31,000 acres of cropland and standing wheat in over 86 farms in Sherman and Wasco counties. In 2020, 26% of human-caused wildfires in Oregon started from debris burning and 23% started from equipment use. To support the state's agricultural industry, Oregon State University Extension is offering a Wildfire Readiness for the Agriculture Community webinar from noon-1 p.m. on May 24; register at OregonState.qualtrics.com. OSU Extension has also created a new online course, Wildfire Preparedness in Agriculture, designed to prepare farmers, ranchers and rural residents for wildfires.

Defensible space doesn’t have to be a moonscape; with proper care, some plants are fire-resistant, like the Iceplant, a ground cover succulent that is low maintenance and doesn’t need a lot of water. As part of Wildfire Awareness Month, the Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal will present a webinar on fire-resistant plants from noon-1 p.m. on May 24. Amy Jo Detweiler, the community horticulturist for OSU Extension in Central Oregon, will host the presentation. Learn more and register at Eventbrite.

The Oregon State Marine Board blog, Boat Oregon, promotes boating safety through detailed stories about recreational boating in Oregon. The current post tells the story of Meg O’Meara Clark, a strong swimmer who drowned in July 2015 during a relaxing float on the Clackamas River; she wasn’t wearing a life jacket. In 2015, her family created “Meg’s Moments,” a nonprofit that collected cash donations and gently used life jackets for the sole purpose of giving them away to people recreating on the Clackamas River. Over the last six years, family members gave away thousands of life jackets. The family is now working with Oregon’s Nautical Safety Foundation to provide their remaining stock of life jackets for donation to life jacket loaner stations along the Clackamas River. Read the full story and subscribe to see future posts at MarineBoard.Wordpress.com.

FEMA Region 10 is presenting a webinar from noon-1 p.m. on May 26 discussing spring flood considerations, information on how communities can prepare and mitigate for floods, and the differences between flood insurance and disaster assistance. Learn how you can be impacted by flood damages and what you can do to mitigate the risk. Register at FEMA.Zoomgov.com.

May 27 is National Heat Awareness Day, encouraging employers and workers to recognize the warning signs for heat illness and keep workers safe. Every year, there are dozens of preventable worker deaths and thousands more workers become ill from extreme heat or humid conditions. Visit the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)’s website for information on the agency’s Heat Illness Prevention Campaign, and the National Weather Service website for heat safety tips and resources.

An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been detected in wild birds in Lane County. This follows detection of the highly contagious virus earlier this month in a backyard flock in Linn County. Although the risk of HPAI to human health is low, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is cautioning Oregonians to avoid close contact with waterfowl (ducks and geese) this spring and summer. This includes feeding waterfowl, which enables the disease to spread between birds more easily. People should avoid touching dead birds or birds that appear sick and report the incident to ODFW at 866-968-2600 or Wildlife.Health@odfw.oregon.gov.

The Oregon Office of Emergency Management has released its 2021 State of the State Capability Assessment Report, an annual assessment of Oregon counties, select cities, tribal partners and state agencies. Information collected in the assessment is used to complete the annual Threat Hazard Identification Risk Analysis and Stakeholder Preparedness Review submitted to FEMA at the end of each calendar year. Further analysis of the assessment data is then compiled and released in this report. The 2021 results indicate Oregon sustained capability overall and built capability in cybersecurity and planning. View the 2021 State of the State Dashboard for more details.

The Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) is offering a webinar on Mission Ready Package (MRP) Development. MRPs are vital in helping EMAC-assisting states document and organize their deployable resources and can also help requesting states find specific resources. This webinar will show resource providers how their personnel working on MRPs can register in EMAC’s Mutual Aid Support System (MASS) database and get a login to use MASS; how their access works; how to create MRPs; and more. The webinar will take place at 11 a.m. on May 25. Register via Zoom.

In February, Oregon’s State Interoperability Executive Council (SIEC) designated the National Public Safety Mutual Channel VMED29 (155.3475) as the default statewide air-to-ground channel for EMS communications in the VHF spectrum. While agencies are not required to adopt VMED29, the SIEC highly recommends the channel be programmed in all public safety radios. To assist agencies in adopting this frequency for this purpose, Oregon has obtained a statewide mobile license and intends to allow agencies to operate under it. Visit Oregon.gov for detailed information about the frequency, its intended use, and the procedures for requesting use of the state’s license.