Kevin Abel / Bureau of Land Management
Firefighters build a fire line in an effort to contain the Barry Point fire.
A 79,000-acre wildfire in south-central Oregon has become the top priority for firefighters across the state.
The lightning-sparked Barry Point fire is one of seven large fires burning in Oregon. Residents of two houses near Lakeview were evacuated Wednesday as it spread.
“We have 1,300 people, we're working 24 hours a day, we've been at it for a week and a half now," said Renee Snyder, fire information officer. "We've had significant runs of the fire where it would go four miles or more in a day in this really rough country, and we still haven’t lost any residences.”
High temperatures and long days have been hard on firefighters, but Snyder said that so far there have been no injuries.
The Barry Point fire is about 30 percent contained. Snyder expects it will take until Aug. 27 to get the flames under control.
