For the past three months, the residents of southeast Lane County have watched as the Cedar Creek Fire grew, seemingly with no end in sight. Oakridge and Westfir residents have dealt with evacuations and  hazardous air quality once they returned.

With the winter months and consistent rainfall approaching, the fire could be completely contained in the next few weeks, according to Bud Sexton, a Cedar Creek Fire public information officer. 

“These folks have definitely experienced some tough times for an extended period of time,” Sexton said. “But things are looking good.”

Since Oct. 25, the location of the fire has received heavy rain. The rain was not only able to help contain the fire, but cleared out the air that plagued the neighboring towns, Sexton said. 

On Oct. 18, the Air Quality Index peaked at 503 in Oakridge, making the air quality hazardous. Since the start of the rain, the AQI has steadily decreased and now sits at 35.

Lane County lifted all evacuation orders since the fires have reduced, and the air quality has returned to a healthy state. Westfir and Oakridge residents, the two closest cities to the fire, are able to return to  normalcy.

“It’s been a long haul for everybody, and I know everybody is excited,” Sexton said.

As of now, the only current closures are in Deschutes National Forest and Willamette National Forest. They will remain closed until a crew surveys each area to lessen any risks, which could take some time. 

Since the start of the fires, the Cedar Creek Fire information Facebook page posts updates multiple times a week. On Nov. 1, the Facebook page announced their last fire update unless conditions worsen. 

The latest update states that the containment goals of the fire have been completed and the next phase of work will be clearing and repairing. The plan is to strategically place foliage in the damaged area to help with growth. 

The area will be carefully observed by crews led by research advisors, Sexton said. The research advisors will tell the crew how to repair the damaged areas to help it return to its natural state. 
“It can take quite a period of time,” Sexton said. “They’ll start that work through this winter and continue on into next year.” He said they have already started the process in the areas they can.

During wildland fires, the National Park Service has set Incident Command System levels to support fires of various sizes. Type 5 being the least extreme and Type 1 being the most extreme.

During September, the peak of the fires, the Incident Command teams reached Type 1. It wasn’t until the middle of October when a Type 3 organization took over the fires. 

On Nov. 3, ICS management changed from Type 3 to Type 4 and is expected to remain during the winter, Sexton said. The Type 4 team is fewer than 50 personnel, with the job of repairing the area by placing foliage.

They are expecting minimal fire activity for the next few days, and with winter incoming, the fire could be completely out within the next few weeks.