There will be a second meeting to discuss the Little Grider Fire with local Happy Camp residents. The meeting will take place tonight, Tuesday July 17, at 7pm at the Grange Hall.

By Linda Martin

Lots of people here have questions about the fires, and the fire fighters working in our town are helpful in sharing information that both educates us about how fires are controlled, and quells our fears. Here are a few questions, and answers.

Q: Why is there a new fire on the hillside above the airport, and why aren’t the helicopters dumping water on it?

A: It appears that a crew is burning underbrush along one of the old logging roads. The helicopters won’t want to interfere with this operation, which is intended to provide a fire break to keep the Little Grider Fire from spreading to inhabited areas in the forest near Happy Camp.

Q: Why aren’t there helicopters working constantly to put out the fire?

A: The heavy smoke during morning hours makes helicopter use impossible. When inversion lifts and smoke dissipates at around 3pm, the helicopters have a small window of opportunity to get into the air and work on dowsing the flames.

Q: Why are so many fire fighters standing around in town while our forest is burning?

A: Nobody works around the clock. They need to rest at times. There are hundreds of fire fighters here, most of whom are in the forest working where we can’t see them. For example some are involved in surveying forest roads for possible fire breaks. Caterpillars have been working to widen roads. In one area the terrian was so steep, a cat got stuck and it took two others to pull it out. And many of those crews we’re seeing, waiting around town now, are positioned here to protect our homes if the fire gets too close.

Q: Why are there no airplanes dropping fire retardant?

A: Probably because the terrain makes it unsafe. We are lucky to have the Klamath River to pull water from, and many locations are only accessible by helicopter. The big choppers including the Sky Crane can drop 2500 gallons in seconds, and are an effective way to stop the fire.

By Linda Martin

I haven’t received any new official Forest Service news updates about the fire, so I’ll share with you what I’ve heard. So far the only evacuations that have taken place are those along Elk Creek Road, south of town. Residents living past Five Mile Bridge have been asked to leave voluntarily. The Titus Fire is heading east toward Elk Creek. Miners and campers have been forced to leave the area, and access to Norcross Campground is no longer allowed.

Meanwhile the Little Grider Fire in the hills west of Happy Camp continues to grow. At this point hundreds of fire fighters have been redirected from other areas in our forest and are now gathered here to help save the town of Happy Camp from incineration. The fire is moving toward Buckhorn Road, and the residents in the Live Oak area may be asked to evacuate within the next 24 hours. This will impact approximately thirty families. An old logging road in that area is being widened and fires are being set to burn out brush in the area, in hopes of slowing the Little Grider Fire as it heads toward this populated area on the west side of Indian Creek. Smoke coming from the top of the hill above the airport is most likely being intentionally set by fire fighters.

Smoke conditions this morning were not favorable for flying, but helicopters are now dropping water on the fire, including a Sky Crane Tanker with 2500-gallon capacity, a CH53 Super Stallion Tanker, and at least three other smaller capacity helicopters with 100 to 250-gallon buckets. Fixed wing aircraft with fire retardant are not being used, most likely because of the terrain being unsafe for them.

The Forest Service is posting updates online at Elk Complex Updates. According to the most recent update the Little Grider Fire covers about 636 acres, and continues to burn downhill towards Perkins Gulch. The Titus Fire covers approximately 1408 acres. It burned over Titus Peak towards Elk Creek yesterday and lines have been constructed around homes in the area.

Long time residents of Happy Camp are not worried. They remember the fires of 1987 when flames threatened the town from Slater Ridge and evacuations were considered. The people I’ve talked to who have been here long enough to remember that fire, twenty years ago, believe that the fire fighters are competent and able to save their homes. I hear this even from people whose homes seem to be in the path of the fire. Others who haven’t experienced fires so close to their homes seem far more concerned.

By Linda Martin

A new forest fire burning in the hills north and east of the Happy Camp airport may force evacuations of homes around the airport and in Indian Meadows by midday Sunday or Monday morning. More information will be posted as it becomes available if possible. My home is one of those that may have to be evacuated unless the fire is brought under control.

According to a local deputy, bulldozers may be used to widen a forest road behind the airport in an attempt to stop the fire from proceeding into Happy Camp through the area around the airport.

Another fire is burning in the hills south of Elk Creek on the south side of the Klamath River. This fire can be clearly seen from Highway 96, and may threaten homes along Curly Jack Road.

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Update, 9:04am – The fire is heading toward Happy Camp. Fire fighters are mapping out home locations in order to provide protection should the fire get close to them. A town meeting will be held at 11am at the Happy Camp Grange Hall to discuss evacuations.

Happy Camp deputy John Evans announced evacuation plans at a meeting on Sunday. You can click on this picture for a full size photograph on which the fire maps can be clearly seen.

Update, 11:51am -  I attended the meeting at the Grange. This was one of the best attended community meetings, ever. The place was packed. Valery Lambeth, Plans Section Chief, was MC. The fire above the airport is being called the Little Grider Fire. Rob Rowley, a corporal from the Sheriff’s Department in Yreka is here to help with evacuations. He will work with the Office of Emergency Services after the fire to help with any needed reimbursements.

Marcia Armstrong, our County Supervisor, attended and spoke to us of her support for this town in this time of crisis. Next up was Alan Vandiver, Happy Camp District Ranger. He told us he has over thirty years working with forest fires and gave us confidence that there’s a competent and effective fire fighting team working on controlling this fire.

Kent Swartzlander is the Incident Commander. He provided an overview of the fires currently burning around Happy Camp, including the Little Grider Fire, which is threatening our community.

Local Sheriff’s Dept. Sergeant, John Evans, was next to speak. He told us that evacuations, if needed, will take place from Doolittle Bridge on Indian Creek, all the way south through town to Chambers Flat on Highway 96. He said that if you leave your home you should put a note on the door telling where you’ve gone. That way deputies won’t waste time looking for people who are not on the premises.

Evacuees are requested to drive west from town as there are other fires near Highway 96, east of here. Sheltering for evacuated Happy Campers will take place at Marble Mountain Ranch near Somes Bar. There is limited room for livestock in that location, but it would be preferable for pet and livestock owners to find other accommodations for their animals if at all possible. It is not mandatory for evacuees to go to Marble Mountain Ranch – it is intended as shelter for people with no place else to go.

The area beyond Five Mile Bridge on Elk Creek Road is being evacuated at this time, however this is a conservative distance from fire danger, chosen because there’s a gate that’s easily closed. The residents between Five Mile Bridge and the Klamath River, including Curly Jack Road residents, are not considered at risk at this time though there are quite a few fires burning on that side of the river.

If you have any special needs, you are requested to write them out. A form we received at the meeting asks for your name, information about your special need, your address, your phone number, and your transportation requirements. This information must be taken to the Sheriff’s office in Happy Camp as soon as possible. Don’t wait until the last minute to ask for help.

John Evans stated that they are requesting that people be ready to evacuate within ten minutes, even if woken up at 3 in the morning by a uniformed deputy knocking on your door. The time to pack and get essentials together is now.

Valery Lambeth, Plans Section Chief, MC’d the meeting.
Rob Rowley of the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department is here to help coordinate evacuation efforts, if needed.

Kent Swartzlander is Incident Commander for the Little Grider Fire.

Alan Vandiver, Happy Camp District Ranger, promised to answer every question before leaving the meeting. Here he is talking to Chris Sorenson, chairman of the Happy Camp Chamber of Commerce.