EAGLE POINT, Ore. – When wildfires threaten rural homes, most people hope firefighters will save them. Carol Mercer isn’t most people.
The 79-year-old ranch owner near Highway 140 just spent roughly $3,500 building fire breaks around her 140 acre property. She paid out of pocket for a local and his Bobcat Tractor to clear perimeter roads and cut paths through the land to stop flames from spreading.
“One stupid flick of a cigarette…millions of dollars gone,” Mercer said. “I’m not gonna waste a good worry and not act on it if I can fix it. And I fixed it.”
Mercer says she’s made fire preparations for years using her own tractor but this season, she couldn’t get to it in time. Rather than wait and hope, she sold a treasured side saddle to cover the cost of hiring help.
“It’s a small investment for a big one,” she said.
The fire breaks form a series of concentric circles across her land, creating space for firefighters to drive, turn around and defend the area if flames ever come through.
“If you only do the perimeter, then the inside can burn hot and fast,” she explained. “So we did both.”
Now, Mercer hopes others will follow her lead. She says she can’t see another ranch in her area with any visible fire breaks.
“What if next year, the Rogue Valley became known as the Fire Barrier County of Oregon?” she asked. “You just have to get off your rear end and do it.”
With fire restrictions already in effect and hot, dry conditions expected to continue, Mercer says the time for preparation is before fire season, not after.
“Worrying about it doesn’t get it done. Hoping about it doesn’t get it done. Starting is what gets it done.”