A fast-moving wildfire ignited July 4 on private land roughly 30 miles northeast of Madras, prompting Level 3 'Go Now' evacuation orders across parts of Wasco County. The fire reached 1,261 acres and was 50% contained by Sunday afternoon.

Jefferson County's annual summer burn ban took effect July 1, prohibiting all open burning through September 30. With fire activity already flaring across the region over the Fourth of July weekend, officials are urging residents to take fire safety seriously.

A wind-driven brush fire on SW Peninsula Drive threatened a home and outbuildings on the Fourth of July before 17 firefighters held it to 0.35 acres. Investigators say improperly discarded smoking materials sparked the blaze.

With hot, dry conditions and elevated fire danger across Central Oregon, Jefferson County has closed all open burning for the summer season. A Fourth of July brush fire at Crooked River Ranch underscored the urgency of the restrictions.

Firefighters from Crooked River Ranch Fire & Rescue and Redmond Fire & Rescue contained a wind-driven quarter-acre brush fire Saturday afternoon on SW Peninsula Drive, keeping it from spreading to a home and several outbuildings. Improper disposal of smoking materials is the suspected cause.

Odysseus Japeth Tewee, 20, of Warm Springs was sentenced Monday to 15 years in federal prison after recording the sexual exploitation of a minor and uploading the material online. The case began with a tip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Josue Jair Mendoza-Melo received four more years in prison for two counts of first-degree sexual abuse of two sisters, who delivered emotional victim impact statements. He will not be eligible for release until at least 2033.

With extreme fire danger across Central Oregon, fire officials are pleading with residents and visitors to make safe choices this holiday weekend. The 2026 fire season has been in effect since May 8 — and a single spark can have devastating consequences.

With July 1 now passed, Jefferson County's annual summer burn restriction period is fully in effect — and this year it started even earlier. Here's what residents across the county need to know before lighting anything this summer.

Central Oregon fire managers are asking residents and visitors to exercise extreme caution with fireworks and campfires this Fourth of July weekend, warning that even a single spark can trigger a major wildfire under current hot, dry conditions.

As fire season returns to Jefferson County, a lawsuit alleging that Central Electric Cooperative's power lines sparked last summer's devastating Cram Fire is working its way through the courts. The fire burned nearly 96,000 acres and destroyed homes and outbuildings near Willowdale.