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Police ask for tips ahead of Almeda Fire anniversary By Mail Tribune staff Updated: Sep 06, 2022 07:28 PM A A After nine search warrants and 154 interviews in four states, the lead agencies investigating the origins of the massively destructive Almeda Fire aren’t much closer to finding a suspect than they were two years ago, according to a joint press release issued Tuesday by Ashland police and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. Some 29 local, state and federal law enforcement investigators have worked the case since the fire was reported at 11:04 a.m. Sept. 8, 2020, at 164 Almeda Drive, Ashland, according to the release. Despite their efforts, the investigation is still “open and ongoing with detectives from APD and JCSO following new leads, exhausting old ones and remaining dedicated to solving the case,” the release stated. “Although there is nothing we can do to ensure closure for people who lost loved ones and property to this fire, we will continue working hard to provide a resolution to this case,” it added. The fire destroyed 2,428 structures, damaged another 134, claimed three lives and ravaged the communities of Talent and Phoenix. What’s known, according to police, is that the fire started in a dry field along Almeda Street. Ashland Fire and Rescue investigators, working alongside the Oregon State Police Arson Unit and the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office, determined the fire was “of human origin.” JCSO and Ashland police brought in detectives from Medford, Central Point and OSP “to investigate this criminal act,” and consulted with the Federal Bureau of Investigation “to provide a possible profile of who may be responsible for this crime.” Some 29 law enforcement investigators, plus two Jackson County deputy district attorneys and four crime analysts, served nine search warrants and interviewed 154 individuals across eight counties in four states, according to the release. No suspects were ever named. “Although the case remains open, we are optimistic that with community support and assistance and continued investigations, we will close this case and give a small measure of resolution to the thousands of people affected,” the release stated. Anyone with information about the Almeda Fire was asked to call Ashland police detective Lindsey Rochon-Evertt at 541-482-5211.