Shortly before 4 pm Thursday, August 7, a vegetation fire was reported along Highway 58 near milepost 37, just east of the city of Oakridge and about 40 miles from Eugene-Springfield.

By 4:08 pm a “Go Now!” Level 3 evacuation order was issued for Dunning Road residents and Hwy 58 was soon shut down. 

By about 5:30 pm, aircraft began dropping water and, later that night, the National Interagency Fire Center had dubbed it the Aubrey Mountain Fire. Such wildfires are often named for nearby geographic features. 

Another well-known geographic feature within the boundaries of the evacuation zone is TV Butte —  the site of a controversial proposed gravel quarry that has been the subject of a longtime battle between people concerned over environmental and quality of life issues from a mine that would be only about a mile from town, and Old Hazeldell, the company seeking to turn the butte into a gravel quarry. A potential location for driveway access to the proposed quarry is off of Dunning Road. 

The U.S. Forest Service reports that as of the morning of August 8, the fire in the Middle Fork Ranger District “is now estimated at 35 acres burning in timber on steep ground.”

George Custer, interim editor of the Oakridge-area newspaper The Highway 58 Herald, was on the scene, taking photos and reporting on the fire. He says that fire assets on the fire on August 7 included four engine crews, two hand crews and two helicopters dropping water. The USDA Forest Service, Oregon Department of Forestry and Oakridge Fire and EMS were all on scene. Oregon State Police and the Oregon Department of Transportation had numerous vehicles assisting with traffic control, he says. 

The Forest Service says in an August 8 news release about the fire that “full suppression efforts continue” and crews will focus on constructing a fire line around the main fire as “well as several spot fires that developed from the strong winds that fanned the fire yesterday afternoon.”

And in addition to nine engines, two hand crews, an interagency hotshot crew and three helicopters currently working on the fire, the USFS says in the release, “an additional interagency hotshot crew, hand crew and helicopter are en route with air tankers currently available as needed.”

Custer estimates that the proposed Old Hazeldell Quarry site is about three quarters of a mile from the fire’s edge. Eugene Weekly reached out to Old Hazeldell for comment.

The cause of the fire is unknown, according to the Forest Service.

Oakridge Mayor Bryan Cutchen says he “will be interested to see what the investigation finds, given the location and the fact there were multiple fires.” 

Cutchen adds, “We are grateful to the Middle Fork Ranger District and the many supporting agencies for their rapid response with an overwhelming number of aviation and ground assets. They were able to get the fire under control quickly.”

Cutchen has spoken about his concerns over the Old Hazeldell proposal. In 2024, the Lane County Planning Commission unanimously recommended denying the proposal, noting that it found that the quarry’s plan to protect the local elk population was incomplete. However, the Lane County Commission tentatively approved the proposal in a 3-2 vote in January.

The fight over the quarry — which is associated with Ed King of King Estate Winery — has dragged on for almost a decade.  

A Level 3 evacuation remains in place for Roberts Ranch Road and Dunning Road near Oakridge. ODOT also has a closure on Highway 58 from milepost 36 to 62.

Fire updates from the Watch Duty App are ongoing.