Jefferson County declares local state of emergency over Grama Fire

The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners declared a local state of emergency on July 17 in response to the Grama Fire, voting to make the declaration effective retroactive to July 13 and to extend emergency authorities through the board's next meeting on July 30 unless rescinded or extended earlier.

The declaration, adopted under ORS 192.640, opens additional state and federal resources for fire response and post-fire cleanup and allows the county to pursue cost recovery for damage caused by the fire, county staff said.

At the special meeting held July 17, the board’s chair read the emergency basis into the record, citing ORS 192.640 and the need to act with less than 24 hours' public notice because of the active fire. Commissioner Taylor moved to approve the resolution; the motion received a second and passed with the commissioners present signaling assent.

Jeff Blake, Jefferson County fire chief, told the board that the fire is still active and moving in a south-southwest direction near district borders, with rough terrain slowing containment. "Today is a critical day and tomorrow's even a more critical day," Blake said, citing very low relative humidity and changing winds that complicate suppression efforts. Blake said incident teams had carried out a large burnout along the west flank, which increased the reported acreage, and that roughly 573 personnel were assigned to the incident.

County staff explained the declaration would enable post-incident cost recovery and reimbursement for eligible cleanup and losses, including livestock, but stressed that evidence and documentation would be required for claims. The resolution adopted by the board sets the emergency expiration to coincide with the board's July 30 meeting; the board may extend or rescind the declaration earlier if conditions change.

The meeting included operational updates and coordination details: the county is supporting state and federal incident management teams and is not the lead on structural firefighting after the conflagration designation; agencies involved include the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service and the Oregon Department of Forestry. Blake said the county has provided medic and surge resources and is supporting smoke-related calls and infrastructure concerns at contracted facilities, including the local correctional facility, where officials are identifying inmates with respiratory vulnerabilities for possible temporary relocation.

Officials also discussed community-facing response steps: the American Red Cross is operating an emergency shelter, the county is posting shelter locations and other information, and the public is encouraged to enroll in Everbridge alerts for real-time notices. Cooperators' briefings and a public meeting were scheduled at 10 a.m. at the local high school to provide updates and coordination; the state planned a separate public briefing as well.

Operational impacts noted during the meeting included closed or restricted roads (Hay Creek and Ashwood areas cited, with Gosner remaining open for now), communication challenges in remote areas, and reported vandalism to hose lines and the need for mobile repeater support. County public-health staff member Tammy asked about respiratory supplies for the correctional facility; Blake said the facility was identifying at-risk inmates and, at that time, did not request supplies, though the county would monitor patient-surge needs.

The board adjourned the special meeting at 8:53 a.m. The declaration enables the county to request additional resources, pursue reimbursement for eligible losses, and adjust response operations as the incident evolves.