The Durkee Fire, which spread rapidly to the south and southeast on Friday, July 19, has spotted north across the Burnt River, prompting the Baker County Sheriff’s Office to expand the level 2 evacuation level — be set to leave — to an area extending north to Interstate 84 near the Pleasant Valley exit.

The Level 3 — leave now — evacuation notice area has been expanded to include areas along the Burnt River Canyon Road near where it enters the Durkee Valley. The town of Durkee does not have an evacuation notice in place.

Amanda Bunch, who lives along the Burnt River Canyon Road near the canyon’s mouth west of Durkee, said the fire moved fast toward her home after it crossed the river last night.

The temperature dropped and the wind changed, however. She said her husband, Levi, who is a volunteer with the Burnt River Rural Fire Protection Association, and his crew worked all night to protect the couple’s home.

Amanda Bunch said she’s fortunate that she was visiting relatives in Roseburg when the fire started on July 17. She said her husband advised her to stay there with the couple’s two young sons, Brim, who’s almost 3, and Rhen, who recently had his first birthday. Amanda said she has remained in Roseburg, getting frequent updates from Levi.

Amanda said it had seemed that the fire was under control at its northwest corner after it spread that direction on the evening of July 17, when it threatened several homes, all of which firefighters protected.

She said her father, who was in the Burnt River Canyon Friday night, told her that the wind shifted and started gusting to 30 to 40 mph, which pushed embers across the river. From there the fire spread east toward the Bunch home, which is on the north side of the Burnt River Canyon Road.

She said Levi told her the flames burned to the top of a knob above their home, but he and the other firefighters saved the house.

Amanda said Levi was “pretty hopeful” Saturday morning that crews could block the fire from spreading farther north of the river. The fear, she said, is that it could burn north through miles of desiccated grass, sagebrush and juniper to Interstate 84.

“Another Windy Ridge,” she said, referring to the Cornet-Windy Ridge fire that burned 104,000 acres in August 2015. That fire, which started in the mountains above Hereford, was propelled by winds more than 15 miles to the east, burning to, and in a few places across, Interstate 84 near Pleasant Valley.

The National Weather Service is forecasting winds from the north and northwest today and Sunday, which would tend to push the fire back toward the Burnt River rather than toward the freeway.

Stopping the fire north of the Burnt River is a “huge priority” for today, said Jessica Reed, public information officer for the management team overseeing work on the Durkee Fire.

Although the forecast winds would move the fire back toward the river, Reed said that with temperatures expected to top 100 degrees again, crews are expecting another challenging day.

Reed said the fire has not been spreading east, toward Interstate 84 and Huntington. The prevailing northerly winds have consistently pushed the flames to the south and southeast, she said.

“This is very much a wind-driven fire,” she said.

As of Saturday morning the fire had not yet reached the area burned in the Cow Valley Fire last week, but Reed said the two fires are close to meeting. The Durkee Fire has mainly been burning parallel to the Cow Valley burn, she said. It would be helpful if the Durkee Fire burned directly toward the other fire, since the Cow Valley Fire has already burned most of the fuel and would act as an effective fire line.

The fire, started by lightning on the morning of July 17, has burned 24,269 acres based on an aerial infrared survey about 1 a.m. on July 20.

According to the management team, 191 people are assigned to the Durkee Fire. However, that total doesn’t include the 248 people who were working on the Cow Valley Fire, most of whom are now assigned to the Durkee Fire, according to the management team. Other resources include retardant tankers and helicopters, about 26 engines, 10 water tender and three bulldozers.

Multiple local volunteer fire districts are also working on the Durkee Fire.