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Rum Creek Fire tops 15,000 acres By Vickie Aldous Updated: Sep 01, 2022 10:32 AM A A A firefighter sets up a sprinkler to help protect Galice Community Hall in the Rum Creek Fire area. Firefighters put out hot spots in Galice The Rum Creek Fire grew to 15,635 acres as of Thursday morning and firefighters surged to protect new areas where the fire crossed lines on the eastern flank — the side closest to Merlin. Merlin remained under a “Level 1 - Be Ready” evacuation alert as of Thursday morning. However, the more dangerous “Level 2 - Be Set” to leave at a moment’s notice alert is near Merlin’s western outskirts. A wide area in the Galice and Rand areas remained under a “Level 3 - Go Now” evacuation alert, and everyone needs to have evacuated the area. Fire mapping Thursday morning showed more hot spots in the Galice area, but firefighters extinguished nearly all hot spots within 200 feet of buildings in and around Galice. Firefighters are continuing work to suppress fires and protect structures, fire managers said Thursday morning. Galice remained partially surrounded by the fire Thursday morning, with fire burning to the north and east. Crews spent Wednesday reconfiguring containment lines where fire crossed lines near McKnabe Creek, using a combination of direct and indirect attack. “This is rough country,” Joe Hessel, incident commander for Oregon Department of Forestry Team 1. “Every foot, every chain, every mile of line we complete is a big deal.” On Thursday, firefighters are targeting the McNnabe Creek drainage, which is steep, deep and full of snags. The area was too unsafe for firefighters to work there overnight. Firefighters are building lines in the area Thursday, fire managers said. Firefighters and bulldozers are preparing fire lines south of Grave Creek for a tactical firing to burn up fuels in coming days, fire managers said. Overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, firefighters successfully burned a pocket of residual fuel near Ennis Island along the Rogue River. They found no spot fires south of the river. The work helps secure the southern edge of the fire, fire managers said. Heavy smoke Wednesday prevented aviation support on the east side of the fire. Skies were clearer on the less populated west side, where multiple retardant drops were made to reinforce containment lines. After an inversion lifts Thursday, fire behavior will likely pick up due to hot temperatures and low humidity. On Friday afternoon or evening, a dry cold front will move into the area, bringing slightly cooler temperatures but gusty winds from the northwest. Firefighters will monitor the weather closely and watch for wind-driven flare-ups, fire managers said Thursday. Wind coming from the northwest pushes the fire toward the Merlin and Grants Pass areas. Structural protection continues in residential areas threatened by fire, with firefighters assessing homes, wrapping structures and installing sprinklers, clearing flammable material from roofs and gutters, on and around decks and areas against homes. To the south and east closest to Grants Pass, residents may see crews building contingency line around Brimstone Road, Quartz Creek and Hog Creek, fire managers said Wednesday night. “If the fire’s going to go that way, we want to be prepared,” John Flannigan, ODF operations chief, said in a Wednesday night briefing. Firefighters made progress to secure the western edge of the fire, located downriver from Rainie Falls. They carried out tactical burns to connect already burned areas with fire lines. The complete line, when mopped up and secure, is expected to stop the fire from moving west, fire managers said Thursday morning. For updates on evacuation zones, the latest mapping of the fire’s footprint, information about emergency evacuation shelter and more, see facebook.com/josephinecountyEM . For air quality updates, see oraqi.deq.state.or.us/home/map . On Thursday morning, air quality was in the unhealthy range in Medford, Talent and Ashland, and in the unhealthy for sensitive groups range for Grants Pass and Shady Cove. For general information about the Rum Creek Fire, including operations and acreage updates posted each morning, see inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8348/ . To sign up for Citizen Alert evacuation alerts via phone, text or email, visit rvem.org . Reach Mail Tribune reporter Vickie Aldous at 541-776-4486 or [email protected] . Follow her on Twitter @VickieAldous .