SISTERS, Ore. (AP) - The Latest on wildfires burning in Oregon (all times local):
8:19 p.m.
Oregon Department of Transportation officials closed the McKenzie Pass Highway late Thursday due to a growing wildfire near Black Crater, about six miles west of Sisters, which has prompted evacuation notices for local neighborhoods.
Transportation officials closed the road also known as Highway 242 Thursday west of Sisters at the east gate, with a “soft closure” at state Highway 126 near McKenzie Bridge and a gate closure farther east. The agency says campers and hikers are being escorted from the area.
The Bulletin in Bend reported Thursday evening (https://goo.gl/JnDpxe ) that the blaze was affecting about 1,600 residents and threatening 650 structures.
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11:20 a.m.
Gov. Kate Brown has invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act, making additional state resources available to help fight a wildfire burning in the Three Sisters Wilderness.
The blaze west of Sisters threatens more than 400 structures as it scorches dead timber from previous large fires. Evacuation notices have been issued, and the Red Cross has opened a shelter at Sisters Middle School.
The fire began last week and stayed relatively small for days. It expanded Wednesday to 5 square miles and is 0 percent contained.
Many other fires are burning in what’s traditionally Oregon’s busiest month for wildfires. An evacuation shelter has been established at a church in Glide for residents affected by wildfires east of Roseburg.
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