Oregon State Fire Marshal: Morrow County Wildfire Risk Reduction

The MARS crew implemented a wildfire risk reduction project at Blake Ranch in Morrow County, OR, funded by the Oregon State Fire Marshal. View the StoryMap and navigate to the “Morrow County” section to watch a short video about the work.

Heppner Fire Department and Morrow County received funds through the OSFM’s Community Wildfire Risk Reduction Grant and strategic investment.  

Crews worked around Blake Ranch to improve their defensible space, making the community more protected against wildfire. Before the project, the community was so heavily forested that some houses couldn’t be seen from the road. Crews focused on the first 50-100 feet to protect homes. 

Blake Ranch is the first Firewise USA community in Morrow County. This investment brought in a stewardship crew for two weeks to complete defensible space projects in this high wildfire-risk community. They also removed brush and debris from the side of roads and driveways to create better visibility for evacuation and response.