MOLALLA, Ore. _ Christine VanOeveren grabbed a bucket Saturday and lugged water from a neighbor's swimming pool to douse embers from a wildfire that threatened to merge with another blaze that would cover an area as big as Los Angeles.
The 45-year-old mother of two and her husband, John, had helped beat back flames Friday that came within 500 yards of their house 45 miles south of Portland, Ore. On Saturday, after clearing ash from their roof, they joined neighbors dousing hot spots at a nearby home.
The couple were among thousands of citizens who raced to defend houses and property from wildfires that have left at least seven people dead and dozens missing. Short on firefighters, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown is asking other states and the federal government to send crews to help battle more than three dozen blazes that have scorched 1 million acres and wiped out entire towns.
"Even if we lose our homes, at least we fought to save them," said VanOeveren, whose house in an evacuation zone has been without power since Tuesday. "We have generators running to keep our freezers going, and all our smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors are beeping constantly."
Thick smoke and ash from the fires made Portland's air quality the worst among the world's major cities Saturday morning. The smoke partially blocked the sun, reducing temperatures and raising humidity as winds diminished, helping firefighters.
High winds earlier in the week drove explosive fires that decimated towns including Phoenix, Talent and Blue River. Andrew Phelps, Oregon emergency management director, said Friday that officials were preparing for a "mass fatality event" once crews get access to burned out communities.
Outside Portland's suburbs, the Riverside fire threatening VanOeveren's house had burned 132,000 acres as of Saturday morning. Officials said that it could merge with the Beachie Creek fire to the south into a blaze covering 500 square miles.
In southern Oregon on Saturday, crews battling raging fires that have left about 50 people missing made progress because of favorable weather overnight, according to the Jackson County sheriff's office. Officials said that the Almeda fire _ which leveled Phoenix and Talent _ had minimal growth and was 50% contained.
Authorities on Friday arrested an arson suspect on suspicion of setting a fire in Phoenix _ near the area where fire officials were already battling the Almeda blaze. The suspect, 41-year-old Michael Bakkela, was charged with two counts of arson, 15 counts of criminal mischief and 14 counts of reckless endangering.
Meanwhile, near Medford, crews battling the South Obenchain fire, which scorched 29,432 acres and was 20% contained, reported progress in improving the containment lines because of overnight humidity coupled with minimal winds.
