August 6, 2021 4:40 a.m.

A lightning strike sparked one new wildfire on Douglas Forest Protective Association protected lands, on Thursday.

Kyle Reed of DFPA said that fire broke out Thursday morning in the Cougar Creek Drainage, 14 miles west of Sutherlin. Reed said a helicopter was dispatched to the incident and was used to keep the fire in check while ground resources hiked into the fire. Forward spread of the Cougar Creek Fire was stopped at ¼ acre. Crews remained at the fire into the evening, mopping up hot spots and securing control lines.

Reed said DFPA will continue to monitor the path taken by Thursday’s thunderstorm for any additional lightning related fires using both aviation and ground resources, in addition to DFPA’s fire detection cameras.

The thunderstorm, which originated west of Roseburg near the Callahan Mountains, tracked north through the Elkton area, and into southern Lane County.