Area burned limited to about three-quarters of an acre on Glenview Drive
By Bert Etling, Ashland.news
Firefighters swarmed and quickly controlled a pair of fires Thursday about 500 feet apart on a hillside on the east side of Lithia Park in the 500 block of Glenview Drive, near where it meets Ashland Loop Road. The human-caused fires are under investigation by an Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) investigator aided by Ashland Fire & Rescue (AFR).
The fires, reported at 4:44 p.m., sent pillars of smoke wafting over town, but firefighters from AFR, ODF and Jackson County Fire District No. 5 had a line around the fires by 5:30 p.m. and in the mop-up stage by 6:40 p.m. Total area burned was held to about three-quarters of an acre.
Mild conditions made the fires spread slowly, AFR reported, and fire officers on scene decided against evacuating the area.
Anyone with any information about the cause of the fire is asked to contact the Ashland Police Department (APD) at 541-482-5211, call the anonymous tip line at 541-552-2333, or email tipline@ashland.or.us.
The area may continue to smoke through Thursday night, according to an AFR report, and both APD and AFR will patrol the area.
Email Ashland.news Executive Editor Bert Etling at betling@ashland.news or call or text him at 541-631-1313.
