Oregon wildfire prompts evacuations and closes interstate in Columbia River Gorge

A wildfire in Oregon has prompted evacuation orders for hundreds of homes and the closure of nearly 20 miles of an interstate in the Columbia River Gorge

A wildfire in Oregon prompted officials to issue evacuation orders for hundreds of homes and to close nearly 20 miles (32 kilometers) of an interstate in the Columbia River Gorge on Wednesday.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek invoked the state’s Emergency Conflagration Act for the Rowena Fire, allowing the state fire marshal's department to mobilize resources, the department said in a news release.

The agency said it was mobilizing an incident management team and six structural task forces, with three responding Wednesday night and the other three arriving early Thursday.

“This early season conflagration should come as a reminder to Oregonians to be ready for wildfire,” State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said.

The Oregon Department of Transportation said Interstate 84 was closed between Hood River and The Dalles. Hood River, a popular tourist destination about 55 miles (89 kilometers) east of Portland, is home to some 8,000 people, and more than 15,000 people live in The Dalles further east.

Residents of more than 700 homes were ordered to evacuate in an area stretching northwest of The Dalles along I-84 and further inland, according to the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office. Residents of more 1,352 homes were told to prepare to leave, including in part of the town’s northern end.

A middle school in The Dalles was set up as a temporary shelter, while the county fairgrounds opened as a shelter for livestock and horses, the sheriff’s office said.

Photos shared by the transportation department showed flames burning alongside and in the median of the highway as wind gusts fanned smoke. A water-dropping helicopter and a plane dropping fire retardant helped fight the fire from above. The fire broke out on Wednesday.

Department spokesperson David House said in an email that the interstate will be closed indefinitely, “due not only to the wildfires but also due to the extreme danger of driving in smoke.”

Washington state's transportation department said a separate brush fire has closed 8 miles (13 kilometers) of State Route 14, which also runs along the Columbia River.

Authorities urged people traveling in the area to use alternate routes.