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WILDFIRE Buckskin fire grows to 2,000 acres By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 15, 2015 @ 10:52 am Updated Jun 15, 2015 at 5:09 PM By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 15, 2015 @ 10:52 am Updated Jun 15, 2015 at 5:09 PM » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> The largest wildfire of the year so far in southwest Oregon hit the 2,000-acre mark Monday.  The Buckskin fire is burning about six miles north of the California border and a mile south of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness Area in the Baldface Creek area of Curry County. Interagency crews announced they have closed access to the area inside the fire boundary.  The closure area is bordered on the south by the California-Oregon border, on the east by forestlands along U.S. Forest Road 4402, on the west by Chrome Creek and by the Smith River at the southwest corner, and on the north by the headwaters of the Chetco River and the area around Broken Cot Creek over to the Josephine Creek headwaters, two miles west of Woodcock Mountain. "In the event that fire burns actively, we don't want to have to evacuate people out of there," public information officer Jacob Welsh said of the closure. The fire is believed to have been sparked by a June 11 lightning strike about 10 miles southwest of Cave Junction, in the same area where the 2002 Biscuit fire burned a half-million acres over a six-month period  Pam Sichting, public information officer on the fire, said crews will use roads and trails around the fire boundary as they lay down fire lines. Sichting said the snag-heavy terrain — some of the snags are remnants of the Biscuit fire — makes access to the blaze difficult and dangerous for crews. "You've got just a huge, huge number of snags, that when the Biscuit fire came through, it burned and killed the trees," Sichting said. "But in all of this, (the fire) is still contained in our area where we want it to be." The attack method involves tree fallers entering the previously burned area and taking down trees as necessary to make it safer for the firefighters. Then hand crews come in, build lines and burn them out, Sichting said. No structures are threatened. The roads along the fire boundaries will remain open for now, a release from the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest said.  There were 408 personnel fighting the fire Monday, including 10 hand crews, two bulldozers, six water tenders and 10 helicopters. More vehicles and personnel were headed to the fire scene. The Incident Command Post is located at Lake Selmac County Campground and is closed to nonfire activity. The helicopter base is located at the Illinois Valley airport in Cave Junction. The public is urged to drive cautiously on Highway 199 and nearby areas due to the increase of fire traffic. A public meeting about suppression efforts is being planned for Tuesday evening in Cave Junction. The time and location were still being nailed down.  Reach reporter Ryan Pfeil at 541-776-4468 or  [email protected] . Follow him at  www.twitter.com/ryanpfeil . By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 15, 2015 @ 10:52 am Updated Jun 15, 2015 at 5:09 PM » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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