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Both structure and wild land firefighters resources have been deployed to the Darlene 3 Fire. There are currently six task forces of structural firefighters working to protect homes and other buildings.

Dozers, hand crews, engines and air resources also continue to fight the fire. Water tankers fill up in Redmond, so planes will be seen flying over Bend throughout the day. 

 

 

Red Cross opens shelter

When the knock on the door occurred at 4 p.m. Tuesday, it was no surprise for La Pine residents Jerry and Kirstin Owens that they’d been ordered to evacuate.

They packed up clothes, their computers and important papers. They grabbed their three children, ages, 5, 4 and 2 and loaded up the car. They left their three bedroom manufactured home on Ammon and Rosland roads in their rearview mirror.

“We’d been watching the smoke, listening to the news,” Jerry Owens said. “We don’t know if our home is safe. The fire was tracking north east and it was headed in our direction.”

The Owens family were among those who were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday. The Red Cross Cascades kept 25 people safe at the La Pine High School overnight, said Rebecca Marshall, Red Cross Cascades regional communications director.

“We’ll be here for the long haul while there’s an evacuation order in place,” Marshall said. “As long as our partners need us, we’ll be there.”

When the fire first flared up businesses opened their doors to evacuees. Adrianne Bauman, co-owner of Legend Cider, said she opened her doors to anyone who needed respite and air conditioning. On Wednesday, she offered free non-alcoholic beverages to anyone who needed a place to hangout, she said.

“It was something when the first was headed northeast of town,” Bauman said. “It was so close to town, that’s what was so scary.”

Air quality bad for Bend 

Residents in Bend woke up to poor air quality on Wednesday as smoke from the Darlene 3 Fire drifted north and settled overnight.

The air quality index reached 196 (unhealthy) at the Bend Pump Station near downtown Bend at 6 a.m., according to data compiled by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

Smoke conditions eased somewhat as the morning wore on. By 9 a.m., air monitoring stations in Bend registered only “moderate” levels of smoke. The highest level at 9 a.m. was 97 at the pump station in downtown Bend.

Julie Brown, a spokesperson for Bend Park & Recreation District, said the smoke did not impact any programs or activities run by the district.