Vinegar Fire Daily Update

The Vinegar fire is located approximately 6.5 miles southwest of Granite, Oregon. It is burning in the Greenhorn Unit of the North Fork John Day Wilderness Area. There are 547 people assigned to work on the fire. On Friday, ORIIMT4 will be released from the fire and ORIIMT2 will take command under the leadership of Incident Commander Brett Fillis. Team 2 is shadowing members of Team 4 today in order to assure a smooth transition. This will be the last update from ORIIMT4.

Morning Briefing August 21, 2013

There were fewer spot fires found yesterday under calm winds. Today begins a transition to a more unstable system of thunderstorms in the area. A Red Flag Warning is in effect for the majority of eastern Oregon. Light showers are possible today, with thunderstorms likely by mid-afternoon. Along with the thunderstorms, firefighters are prepared for shifting winds up to 50 mph and small hail. Downdrafts from a thunderstorm can affect the fire behavior from as much as 20 miles away. Rain could be heavy at times with a 40% chance of rain by tonight. The expected weather pattern may limit the use of air resources on the fire today.

A 200 foot fuelbreak will be completed on the southeast side of the fire near the community of Greenhorn. Greenhorn and Alamo residents remain under a Level 1 evacuation notice. Masticators and feller bunchers will complete preparations of primary and secondary containment lines along the 10 and 1310 roads today.

Basic Information
Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Wednesday August 14th, 2013 approx. 11:00 AM
Location	27 miles NE of John Day, OR
Incident Commander	Brian J. Watts
Current Situation
Total Personnel	547
Size	1,059 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Friday August 30th, 2013 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber (litter and understory)Subalpine fir with dead and down.
Fire Behavior	Active fire behavior with torching and spotting.
Significant Events	Greenhorn and Alamo remain in a level I. Area and road closure in effect. Construction of secondary an primary containment lines in Branch II.
Outlook
Planned Actions	Point protection, finish construction of containment lines on east side of fire. Continue contingency line preparation.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	High
Remarks	Transition to Oregon IIMT Team 2 (Fillis) will occur at 0600 8/23/2013.
Current Weather
Wind Conditions	17 mph NW
Temperature	85 degrees
Humidity	15%

Vinegar Fire Daily Update

The Vinegar fire is located approximately 6.5 miles southwest of Granite, Oregon. It is burning in the Greenhorn Unit of the North Fork John Day Wilderness Area. There are 561 people assigned to work on the fire. Crews that have been working on a containment line along the Ben Harrison Trail on the north side of the fire are staying at Ben Camp. The remaining personnel are staying in the Incident Base Camp located at Crane Flat, approximately 8 miles north of Granite on Road 73 (52). On Friday, ORIIMT4 will be released from the fire and ORIIMT2 will take command under the leadership of Incident Commander Brett Fillis. The next few days will be a transition period between the two teams to assure a smooth handoff. Yesterday, crews and air resources were aggressively suppressing spot fires on the southeast and east sides of the fire. A protective fuel break has been established on the southeast side to reduce the potential fire behavior should the fire cross containment lines near the community of Greenhorn. Upon recommendation from OR IIMT4, the Sheriff has downgraded the evacuation notice for the Alamo area from Level 2 to Level 1. Levels 1, 2 and 3 are typically described by Ready (1), Set (2) and Go (3). The Greenhorn area remains under a Level 1 notification. The weather pattern is expected to change beginning Wednesday, with a slight chance of thunderstorms and a fire weather watch beginning at 11am on Thursday. A fire weather watch (FWW) is issued by the National Weather Service and means that critical fire weather conditions are forecast to occur. The FWW is expected to be upgraded to a red flag warning. Red Flag criteria occur whenever a geographical area has been in a dry spell for a week or two, the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) is high to extreme, and the following forecast weather parameters are expected: 1) a sustained wind speed average of 15 mph or greater, 2) relative humidity less than or equal to 25 percent, and 3) a temperature of greater than 75 degrees F.

Basic Information
Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Wednesday August 14th, 2013 approx. 11:00 AM
Location	27 miles NE of John Day, OR
Incident Commander	Brian J. Watts
Current Situation
Total Personnel	561
Size	964 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Friday August 30th, 2013 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber (litter and understory)Subalpine fir with dead and down.
Fire Behavior	Active fire behavior with single tree/group tree torching.
Significant Events	Reduced evacuation level for Alamo to a Level 1. Area and road closures in effect August 19th. Construction of secondary and primary containment lines in Branch II.
Outlook
Planned Actions	Point protection, finish construction of containment lines on east side of fire. Continue contingency line preparation.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	High
Current Weather
Wind Conditions	18 mph NW
Temperature	85 degrees
Humidity	13%

Vinegar Fire Daily Update

The Vinegar fire is located approximately 6.5 miles southwest of Granite, Oregon. It is burning in the Greenhorn Unit of the North Fork John Day Wilderness Area, in a mixed conifer stand of subalpine fir and lodgepole pine. The fire is moving through heavy dead and down fuel. Grasses and forbs in the fire area are green and are not carrying fire. There are 517 people assigned to work on the fire. The southeast and east sides of the fire continue to be the highest priority. A fuel break has been completed on the southeast side to reduce the potential fire behavior should the fire cross containment lines near the community of Greenhorn. A containment line along the Ben Harrison Trail on the north side of the fire is nearing completion. Ben Camp, a spike camp, has been established for these crews. Fire behavior has included occasional single tree or small group torching and spotting. Spot fires are being aggressively attacked with ground and aviation resources to minimize fire growth. The weather pattern is expected to change beginning Wednesday, with a slight chance of thunderstorms. A Fire Weather Watch has been issued for the area beginning Thursday afternoon and continuing into Friday morning. An anchor point is being established in the Salmon Creek area. An anchor point is an advantageous location, usually a barrier to fire spread, from which to start constructing a fireline. The anchor point is used to minimize the chance of being flanked by the fire while the line is being constructed. Evacuation notices remain the same.The Alamo area residents have been advised to prepare to evacuate, while the Greenhorn residents have been advised of the fire status and potential in their location. Road and area closures are in place surrounding the fire area. Details about the closures are available by calling Vinegar Fire Information at 541-755-9003.

Basic Information
Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Wednesday August 14th, 2013 approx. 11:00 AM
Location	27 miles NE of John Day, OR
Incident Commander	Brian J. Watts
Current Situation
Total Personnel	517
Size	913 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Friday August 30th, 2013 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber (litter and understory)Subalpine fir with dead and down.
Fire Behavior	Active fire behavior with single tree/group tree torching and spotting.
Significant Events	Level I evacuation notification for Greenhorn. Level II evacuation notifications recommended for Alamo located north of Greenhorn. Area and road closures in effect August 19th. Construction of secondary and primary containment lines in Branch II.
Total Personnel	517
Size	913 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Friday August 30th, 2013 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber (litter and understory)Subalpine fir with dead and down.
Fire Behavior	Active fire behavior with single tree/group tree torching and spotting.
Significant Events	Level I evacuation notification for Greenhorn. Level II evacuation notifications recommended for Alamo located north of Greenhorn. Area and road closures in effect August 19th. Construction of secondary and primary containment lines in Branch II.
Outlook
Planned Actions	Point protection, finish construction of containment lines on east side of fire. Continue contingency line preparation.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	High
Current Weather
Wind Conditions	20 mph NW
Temperature	89 degrees
Humidity	16%