KWSO News for Tue., Sep. 22, 2020

The Lionshead Fire is at 198,916 acres and was listed at 13% containment yesterday.  There are 1,122 personnel on the fire that was started by lightning on August, 16, 2020.  In the Northeast of the fire – crews have worked directly on the fire’s edge towards Badger Butte, reassessing containment options along an existing road system.  The eastern fire edge is secure, but crews will continue to mop up and patrol for hot spots.   On the southeast perimeter, crews have been working west from north of Jefferson Lake, to an area of rugged lava rock.  The edge of the south side of the Lionshead Fire hasn’t shifted.  A combination of hand and dozer line is being constructed using a historic burn scar as an anchor point and tying into Highway 22.   Line construction continues west as terrain allows.  The areas of Idanha and New Idanha and private lands to the south of the fire are looking good. In many places the fire has checked itself as it burns up against road systems. Structure protection efforts continue. Utility companies are starting to repair infrastructure in the Detroit area. On the northwest flank of the fire suppression plans are being developed while Spot fires are being focused on and indirect contingency lines are being established in the event that fire activity increases, and firefighters are not able to engage the fire directly.  There is a virtual community meeting tomorrow at 6pm on the Lionshead Fire Facebook Page.

The number of fatalities in Oregon from the recent wildfires has increased from eight to nine. Fires continued to rage across the West Coast Monday.  The Pacific Northwest Region of the Forest Service reported Monday that 27 large wildfires continue to burn 1,576,213 acres across Oregon and Washington. There are more than 9,000 fire personnel battling these fires.

The U.S. Census Bureau begins a three-day blitz today to count the homeless. This is one of the last steps before counting for the 2020 Census wraps up next Wednesday September 30^th.   Ellen Abellera is a Congressional liaison for the Census Bureau who says  “Those are done in shelters, in mobile food banks and in soup kitchens. That is a special kind of operation.”  The count of homeless people by the Census Bureau was supposed to happen back in the spring. But it had to be postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. The virus is still around, of course. But now there’s no more opportunity for delay. That’s because counting for the once-every-ten years national census is scheduled to end next week … You can do the census online at my 2020 census dot gov.  It can be done on a computer, a tablet or a smart phone and only takes about 10 minutes.

Yesterday, the House of Representatives unanimously gave final congressional approval to legislation introduced by Greg Walden to nullify a fraudulent treaty with the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs.  The 1865 Treaty Nullification Act was passed by the Senate in late June of last year.  The Warm Springs Tribes in 1855 entered into a treaty with the United States, defining the trust relationship between the parties, and establishing rights to land and off-reservation hunting and fishing.  However, in 1865, an unscrupulous Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Oregon who wrote a supplemental treaty that amended the 1855 agreement to prohibit members of the Warm Springs from leaving their reservation without government permission and relinquishing all off-reservation rights.  The 1865 treaty essentially gives away hunting and fishing rights that were protected in the 1855 treaty.   And that is why having the 1865 document nullified is so important.  The bill now goes to the president for his signature.