September 30, 2021 10:30 a.m. 

With warmer, drier weather, firefighters made good progress on the Devils Knob Complex on Wednesday.

An update from Pacific Northwest Team 2 said temperatures returned to seasonal norms with highs ranging from the 60s to the 70s over the fire area. 17 excavators were able to continue clearing woody debris out of roadside ditches and cleaning out culverts to prepare for winter precipitation and rains next spring. 11 chippers are working around various fire perimeters, including Forest Road 28 to chip small diameter trees and branches left over from active fire suppression. As containment has increased and fire activity moderated after recent rain events, crews were able to remove the fire-resistant structure wrap that have been in place on the buildings in the South Umpqua Experimental Forest. The buildings were not damaged in the fire.

Crews will be able to take advantage of the warm and dry conditions and resume the repair of dozer lines. Excavators will reengage on the northern portion of the Smith Fire and all around the Big Hamlin Fire, as well as the 23 other fires in the Devils Knob Complex to repair and naturalize dozer lines.

Firefighters have completed repair on nearly one-quarter of the more than 300 miles of fire line despite the recent challenging weather conditions.

Containment on the Devils Knob Complex is still at 58 percent.