Wasco County Debris Burn Ban Being Lifted
From Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue:
By Stephanie Krell
The Dalles, Ore., Oct. 15, 2025 — With the continued forecast of cool, wet weather, local Fire Districts, Wasco County, and the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) have agreed to lift the seasonal burn ban on October 17th at 12:01 a.m.
This will allow for burning in barrels and small debris piles. Timing for lifting the burn ban will coincide with ODF terminating Fire Season, also on October 17th at 12:01 a.m., across the Central Oregon District, including The Dalles Unit. In part, termination of Fire Season will remove the requirement for fire equipment on forestry operations, associated with Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPLs).
As a reminder, escaped debris burns remain a leading cause of destructive fires on private and public lands. ODF Fire Managers and the Wasco County Fire Chiefs remind residents that they need to read the burn permit issued to them to ensure that burning is allowed on a given day, and to follow all instructions after obtaining any necessary permits. Wind is a big factor that can affect the spread of fire from debris piles into vegetation adjacent to a burn pile, or embers that the wind blows into nearby dry vegetation.
Watch the weather forecasts and ensure you have a fire-safe area cleared around your pile, with water and tools readily available. Monitor your pile until it has consumed and is completely out cold, as unattended piles can hold residual heat and rekindle, spreading out of control at a later time without warning. Fire Districts under ORS 478, as well as ODF under ORS 477, have the authority to recover costs involving response to a fire that, due to negligence, escapes from a debris burn and develops into a wildfire. In other words, an escaped burn can be extremely costly to a homeowner.
Our federal partners (US Forest Service & Bureau of Land Management) will also begin performing prescribed burns throughout the region. These prescribed burns will be conducted under carefully planned fuel and weather conditions with federal, state, and local fire resources. These prescribed burns improve forest health and reduce the forest fuels in order to lower the wildfire risk to our communities, which is ever-present later in the season when the conditions are even more extreme.
Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue, through grant funding from the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office, is funding free yard debris disposal at The Dalles Disposal Transfer Station for residents of the district on Saturdays in November.
Burn barrels in the City of The Dalles are prohibited. The Dalles Disposal also offers 60-gallon bins for yard debris pickup.
Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Jensen encourages residents to choose this option rather than burning. “Uncontrolled debris burning remains a significant factor in outdoor fires. Despite seemingly moderate conditions, a minimal amount of wind can carry a single ember and escalate into a major, catastrophic incident”.
Local burn information phone numbers:
Mosier Fire District – (541) 478-3333
Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue – (541) 296-9445
Tygh Valley Rural Fire Protection District – (541) 993-4266
Dufur Volunteer Fire Department – (541) 467-2349
Wamic Rural Fire Protection District – (541) 544-2338
Juniper Flat Fire Protection District - (541) 328-6388
Shaniko Volunteer Fire Department – (503) 508-4688
Antelope Fire Department – (541) 489-3201
Maupin Fire Department – (541) 395-2698
Oregon Department of Forestry – (541) 296-4626
Permits are issued on private land south of the Mosier & MCFR Districts.
This includes properties within Tygh Valley, Wamic and Juniper Flats Rural Fire Districts that overlap ODF’s District protection boundary.
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