Local News
KWSO News for Tue., Oct. 6, 2020
Oct
The Lionshead Fire began during a lightning storm on August 16, 2020. It is listed at 46% Containment today at 204,427 acres. Interior burning to the northeast will continue to generate smoke for the next few days, but that burning is far less intense than the extreme fire behavior seen in early September.
About 96,266 acres burned on the reservation, representing an estimated at millions of board feet of timber. Tribal employees will begin developing a salvage plan later this week. On a more positive note, “We didn’t lose any structures at all,” said Bobby Brunoe, tribal branch of natural resources general manager. “We got lucky.” Among the structures at risk were Shitike Lookout and Peter’s Pasture Boys Camp.
Rain is in the forecast for Friday and Saturday which is expected to help around the fire perimeter. Even after a season-ending event – enough precipitation to wet exposed fuels so thoroughly they are unlikely to burn — fire can remain underground for weeks and even months. Much like banking a fire in a fireplace or woodstove, hot coals can continue smoldering deep within the stumps and root systems without emitting smoke for long periods of time.
“There’s so much heat from [burning] stump holes deep in the ground, smoldering, it’s not unheard of for small fires to appear in late spring or summer from overwintering,” Fire Behavior Analyst Dean Warner said.
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Hunting season on the Warm Springs Reservation began Saturday for Buck Deer with Rifle. The season is open until October 25th. There is a closure area for all hunting due to wildfires and those areas must be avoided. There is mandatory reporting of all hunter harvest. Failure to report harvest results will result in a loss of hunting privileges for subsequent tags. Harvest and hunting information is important for the wildlife department in determining wildlife population sizes, herd compositions and hunting pressure. Additional On Reservation hunting seasons are: Bull Elk – Rifle – November 7-29, 2020 – Black Bear – October 3 – December 31, 2020 – Cougar – Open Season. Visit the Spilyay Tymoo website for access to Hunting Regulations, Maps of Zones and area closures due to wildfire. https://wsnews.org/2020/10/ctws-hunting/
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The FBI is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest, and conviction of the person or people responsible for the death of Gunner Bailey in March of 2019, The FBI and Warm Springs Police Department are jointly investigating this case. Anyone with information concerning this homicide is asked to contact the FBI in Bend at (541) 389-1202 during normal business hours, the FBI in Portland at (503) 224-4181 24 hours a day, or the Warm Springs Police Department at (541) 553-3272. Information may also be submitted online at https://tips.fbi.gov.
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Gerald L. Smith, a member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, has been named the new general manager of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. His first day was Sept. 14. Smith has served as the Tribal administrator of the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe in Fallon, Nev., the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation on the Idaho-Nevada state line and the Reno Sparks Indian Colony; and general manager for the Quileute Tribe in Washington state. He also has served as the chief operating officer for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, business manager/personnel at Chemawa Indian School in Salem, Ore., and has worked in organizations in New Mexico and Washington, D.C. In the early 1990s Smith was KWSO station manager for a time.
