Star Mountain Fire & Archie Creek Fire Update 4 pm Sept 8th

(UNF) Two fires burning east of Glide displayed extreme fire growth Tuesday afternoon due to hot, dry, and windy conditions. The Star Mountain Fire which originated in the Susan Creek area and the Archie Creek Fire which started in the Steamboat area are both estimated to be 6,000 to 8,000 acres in size with a fire burning on both sides of Highway 138 East and the North Umpqua River. With strong east winds forecasted through Wednesday, these fires are expected to merge together and continue to spread to the west. Multiple homes and recreational sites in and around the fire area have already received Level 2 “Be Set” and / or Level 3 “GO!” evacuation notices. Residents are urged to take these evacuation notices seriously and follow the recommendations of responders. Evacuations notices are being coordinated between fire officials and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. Follow DCSO’s Facebook page for current evacuation notices. The Red Cross has a temporary resource center set up at the old Glide Middle School (301 Glide Loop Road) to assist residents displaced by the fire. Highway 138 East remains closed to non-fire traffic between Milepost 17 and 47. Motorists are advised to use alternative routes and to monitor www.tripcheck.com for updates on the highway closure. An Incident Management Team has been ordered by the Umpqua National Forest, the Roseburg BLM and the Douglas Forest Protective Association to lead suppression efforts on these two incidents. Wednesday morning, Northwest Interagency Incident Management Team 9 (I.C. Goff) will in-brief with local fire officials and assume command of the fire soon after. The cause of both the Star Mountain Fire and the Archie Creek Fire remains under investigation.