The Flat Fire, which is burning two miles northeast of Sisters in Central Oregon, has grown to more than 23,000 acres and is 13% contained, as of Friday morning. The fire broke out last week, grew rapidly and prompted Level 1, 2 and 3 evacuation orders in Deschutes and Jefferson counties. On Thursday, Level 3 orders were downgraded to Level 2 in both counties. According to an update posted Thursday morning, five homes have been destroyed by the fire, the cause of which is still under investigation.  

Jim Cornelius, editor-in-chief of The Nugget Newspaper in Sisters, says that while the community is no stranger to wildfires, efforts have expanded in recent years to make it more fire-wise and resilient to wildfires. The city is considering updates to its development code for new construction and in the spring, a local nonprofit, Citizens4Community, organized community forums to educate residents about fire insurance and wildfire preparedness, from assembling a go bag to requesting a free wildfire home assessment. 

Cornelius joins us for an update about the Flat Fire, its impact on Sisters and how the catastrophic Labor Day Fires of 2020 shaped the community’s fire-readiness.