MEDIA RELEASE Deschutes National Forest 63095 Deschutes Mkt. Rd., Bend, OR https://www.fs.usda.gov/deschutes

Prineville District BLM 3050 N.E. 3rd St., Prineville, OR www.or.blm.gov/or/districts/prineville

Ochoco National Forest 3160 N.E. 3rd St., Prineville, OR https://www.fs.usda.gov/ochoco

Central Oregon Interagency Dispatch Center https://gacc.nifc.gov/nwcc/districts/COIDC/

Fire Information: (541) 316-7711 Containment: 60% Size: 24,079 Inciweb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5517/

Milli Fire September 8, 2017 Daily Update Thunderstorms passed through Central Oregon yesterday and blanketed the area with lightning and rain. The Milli Fire area likely received between .03 and .10 of an inch of rain yesterday which will help the finer fuels like grass and shrubs retain moisture. Humidity recoveries were good over the fire area, which generally makes fuel less receptive to ignition but this will likely only last for the next few days until a drying and warming trend returns. The area closure in place for the Milli Fire has been reduced. While the western, southern and eastern boundaries of the closure remain the same, the northern border has decreased to open access around Black Butte Ranch and Cold Springs Campground. More information on this closure can be found at the Forest Closures link below. A Red Flag Warning remains in effect through 11:00 p.m. today for abundant lightning and gusty outflow winds. If any new fires are ignited from lightning strikes in the Milli Fire area, the team will respond to them. Firefighters continue repairing and rehabilitating fire line along the northwestern edge of the fire area. Crews also continue monitoring the perimeter as it pushes into the lava flows along Highway 242 ensuring that all hot spots are monitored until cold. The majority of heat from this fire remains in the southwestern edge of the fire perimeter as it moves slowly south in the Pole Creek burn and west into rock. Acreage on this fire will likely grow moderately in the coming week while containment remains at 60%. The west side of the fire continues to burn down slope with occasional torching in pockets of timber in the Three Sisters Wilderness and will continue to extinguish naturally when it runs out of fuel in the lava fields. Fire will also continue a slow move to the southwest in the Pole Creek burn area where overhead hazards remain a concern for firefighter safety. When necessary, firefighter will utilize indirect firefighting tactics like helicopter bucket drops to cool hot spots. Links Road Closures - OR 242 is closed east of Cascade Crest to the junction of FR 15. For further information see www.tripcheck.com Forest Closures- For further information go to: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/deschutes/alerts-notices Smoke monitoring- Information is available at: oregonsmoke.blogspot.com ###