Tomorrow, Friday, February 14th two controlled burns will be managed for community wildfire safety by the Ashland Forest Resiliency. Prescribed fire burn crews will be out at the same locations. 

1. One of the burns is northwest of USFS Road 2060-300/Hitt Road area on the west side of town.  
2. A second burn is located on upper Yank Gulch Road. The controlled burn is about four miles south and west of Highway 99.    

Potential Smoke Impact 
Smoke will be visible from Highway 99, Interstate 5 and parts of Talent. No roads or trails will be closed, however, some smoke impacts could occur close to the controlled burns around upper Yank Gulch and the Ostrich Peak area. To avoid recreating in smoke, use alternate trails on the east side of the watershed up Tolman Creek Road or the Ashland Loop Road. Smoke sensitive people should avoid areas closest to the controlled burns. 
   
Why We Conduct Burns
A recent article in the Ashland Daily Tidings explains more about why we use controlled burns. See 'Fighting Fire with Fire' for details. 

More Information

• If you live close to a burn location, keep windows closed and if you smell smoke, follow health recommendations on Smokewise Ashland.​​
• Text based notifications: text the word "WATERSHED" in the message line to 888777 as the recipient. You will get an auto confirmation text. 
• AFR Facebook
• smokewiseashland.org​
• See controlled burn on the watershed camera
• Burn locations can be accessed through an online map

 
​Conditions for burning are good with a weather system that will move smoke away from town.  Controlled burns are a critical part of creating a safer, more resilient landscape and community in the face of increasing fire risk due to climate change and overgrown forests. Find out more about why we burn.