PORTLAND, Ore. — It’s been more than two weeks since Labor Day winds fanned the devastating wildfires across western Oregon. About one million acres of Oregon forests have burned, and they’re still burning. And nearly 200 miles of state roads are still closed.
ODOT released new drone video on Tuesday, showing the devastation in the Santiam Canyon near Detroit.
"We've closed off 244 miles of state roads at the peak, the evaluation process is going to be enormous," said ODOT spokesman Don Hamilton. "It's going to take a long time."
Hamilton said ODOT crews have many weeks ahead assessing damage and lining up repairs. Hundreds of thousands of trees were burned near ODOT roads; they’ll have to be cleared, along with all the other debris.
Hillsides, bridges and culverts all need to be evaluated - it’s possible some major repairs will be needed, they just don’t know yet.
And roads will need to be repaired, re-striped and signs replaced.
After the 2017 Eagle Creek fire, ODOT’s cost was $21.5 million. 47 miles of Intertstate-84 were impacted and 13 miles of the Historic Columbia River Highway were closed for months.
That recovery pales in comparison to the daunting task ahead.
"The work we have to do is far, far greater than the recovery from the Eagle Creek fire," said Hamilton. "This becomes more difficult with the expected rains, with the threat of slides. There's a lot of different dangers that we're facing right now as we start the recovery process."
About 50 miles of road have since reopened. You can get the very latest ODOT road closure information on TripCheck.Com.