OPB’s First Look: A proactive approach to fire in Mosier

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Good morning, Northwest.

While some towns around the Pacific Northwest are building skills to fight fire, others are also taking steps to prevent catastrophic blazes in the first place.

OPB’s Porter Levenson reports this morning on the debate in Mosier about whether to start a prescribed burn association. The story starts today’s newsletter.

Also this morning, an uncommon legal dispute in Washington County.

Here’s your First Look at Tuesday’s news.

— Bradley W. Parks

Top story

As blazes rage across Oregon, Mosier explores a proactive approach to fire

Mosier small business owner Drew Merritt and his wife, Kristin Currin, came terrifyingly close to a wildfire in 2020. The raging Mosier Creek Fire crept within 300 yards of their property as they raced home from a camping trip.

“We could see it moving up the canyon and trees torching,” Merritt said. “It was definitely panic-inducing at that point because it was looking pretty threatening, but we were extremely fortunate with that fire.”

Now six years later, Merritt is working to make sure they never feel that feeling again. Earlier this summer, he attended an informational meeting alongside more than 30 other Mosier residents to discuss forming a Prescribed Burn Association in their town.

These informal, community-based groups practice a wildfire defense that’s been used for millennia by Indigenous peoples: setting fires proactively and in controlled conditions to reduce the risk of out-of-control firestorms later. (Porter Levenson)

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3 things to know

• Trains will start running as early as Monday past a Portland warehouse that was recently consumed by fire, prompting city officials to once more express concerns that vibrations from rail operations could trigger a dangerous building collapse. (Riley Martinez)
• Washington County’s criminal justice system is experiencing a rare public rift among top officials as they feud over how to run the local drug court. While the disagreement can be traced to a Hillsboro man’s sentencing in May, it has evolved into a debate over judicial independence. (Troy Brynelson)
• A federal appeals court halted a court order that would have forced Oregon corrections officials to ensure they are not relying on men’s prisons to hold incarcerated transgender women. (Shaanth Nanguneri, Oregon Capital Chronicle)

Northwest headlines

• Financial details make EWEB commissioners consider smaller Willamette River treatment plant (Zac Ziegler, KLCC)
• $20M in long-term care money for Washington immigrants to cover fewer than 200 people (Jake Goldstein-Street, Washington State Standard)
• Washington loosens financial assistance requirements, other state laws in effort to mitigate wildfire impacts (Sami West, KUOW)

Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation

“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):

• Outdoor summer camps in Oregon rescheduling and canceling due to wildfire smoke
• Proposed data center in Salem stalled
• What the Seattle Supersonics relocation can teach us about the Trail Blazers

One more look

Welcome to the Fire Pit: Portland embraces its reborn WNBA team

The fact Portland has shown up for its new WNBA team is, in many ways, unsurprising given the city’s long history of embracing women’s sports.

The expansion Fire ranked fourth in the league with an average attendance of about 14,500 fans per game. The only teams drawing more are the Golden State Valkyries, the New York Liberty and the Caitlin Clark-led Indiana Fever.

The Fire have dubbed the Moda Center the “Fire Pit” on game days, and the team leans into the motif with pyrotechnics in game introductions.

“I think we’ve just been so fortunate, to be honest, all year to have such an amazing atmosphere here at the Fire Pit,” Fire coach Alex Sarama said. “So that’s on the fan base; that’s because of this local community and just turning up and supporting the team as they do.”

The Fire host the league-leading Minnesota Lynx tomorrow night. (Anne M. Peterson, AP)

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