Deschutes National Forest in Oregon Clears Homeless Camps for Wildfire Prevention Project

When the midnight deadline arrived on 1 May for homeless campers to vacate the Deschutes National Forest, although many had left the area there were still about 40 people who remained in secluded areas off forest dirt tracks.

The deadline was issued by the U.S. Forest Service so that crews of workers could make a start on reducing the risk of wildfires in a section of the forest near Bend.

Homeless Campers Moved to Juniper Ridge North of Bend

Homeless campers who adhered to the deadline were moved to the Juniper Ridge campsite north of Bend which has been declared a ‘temporary safe stay area’. The property is jointly owned by the city of Bend and Deschutes County.

Controversy has surrounded the closure of the homeless campsite in Cabin Butte, a 25,804-acre area inside the Deschutes National Forest. Homeless residents have had since January to vacate the forest campsite and head to Juniper Ridge.

However, despite those campers who had ‘disappeared’ deeper into the forest, the closure was uneventful with Forest Service officers handing out granola bars and burritos to campers leaving the site.

Vegetation Will be Cleared to Prevent the Outbreak of Wildfires

Log trucks and machinery will move onto the site within a few weeks to begin clearing vegetation and set fire breaks to prevent the outbreak of brush fires.

Forest Service officers will also have to remove trash that has accumulated at the forest encampments that housed about 200 people at one stage.

The Deschutes National Forest has announced that work will continue on the wildfire prevention project until July. The area has been the site of 10 major wildfires in the past three decades.

U.S. District Judge Michael W. McShane dismissed an emergency restraining order seeking to delay the closure of the homeless forest campsite.

While he sympathized with the homeless applicants, the judge said the Forest Service was not responsible for homelessness and a delay would not be in the public interest.