Wagoner Hill Fire west of Summerville injures 1 person

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, July 31, 2025

UNION COUNTY — A fire west of Summerville injured one person and destroyed two cabins.

The Wagoner Hill Fire started Monday, July 28, at a property on top of Wagoner Lane, according to Union County Emergency Manager Nick Vora. Dispatch received a call around 2:30 p.m. that a cabin was on fire.

“One person was emergently transported to a landing zone by the La Grande Fire Department and subsequently flown to a regional hospital by Life Flight with serious injuries sustained in the fire,” Vora said.

The identity of this person has not been released, but Vora confirmed the individual was present prior to the arrival of fire resources. No firefighters or other first responders were injured during the response.

The Oregon Department of Forestry was the lead agency on scene, Vora said, since the blaze was within ODF’s jurisdiction for wildland fire response. The U.S. Forest Service and Imbler and La Grande rural fire protection districts responded to the Wagoner Hill Fire to provide mutual aid.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office and Union County Emergency Services also were on scene to assist with the incident. La Grande Fire Department responded with an ambulance.

Firefighting efforts utilized wildland fire engines, a bulldozer, a K-Max helicopter and water tenders.

“The fire immediately involved one of the cabins prior to crews arriving,” said J.B. Brock with the Oregon Department of Forestry. “The fire then spread to a second cabin, directly adjacent to and in very close proximity of the first.”

The two cabins, along with the contents inside, were a total loss. The blaze burned approximately one acre, according to Brock, including the main fire perimeter and a number of small spot fires.

Firefighters were on scene until around 9 p.m. on the first day. Over the next two days, Brock said, crews were out gridding and mopping up. They searched for and extinguished small spot fires and heat within the fire perimeter.

“Crews will continue to check the fire for any heat or smoke for the next several days,” he said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, according to Brock, and ODF requested assistance with the structure fire investigation from the Oregon State Fire Marshall.