As Oregon faces its worst wildfire season on record, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved emergency funding for three of the state’s five major wildfires, including the Akawa Butte Fire, while denying assistance for the Rowe Creek Complex and East Evans Creek fires. Both of the denied fires surpassed the 200-home impact threshold that state officials say has become the practical standard for approval, and Reps. Levy and Breese-Iverson are calling on FEMA to treat every Oregon community equally.
Rep. Emerson Levy (D-Bend)
“While I’m glad to see the Akawa Butte Fire getting the funding it needs, the relief can’t stop there. The Rowe Creek Complex and East Evans Creek fires met the standard threshold of impacted households, but they were turned away. That’s not right.”
Rep. Vicki Breese-Iverson (R-Prineville)
“I’ve lived in rural Oregon my whole life, and sadly this is exactly what we’ve come to expect from government — same disaster, same need, but not the same help. Our communities did everything right and FEMA still shut the door. I’m calling on the federal government to quit treating rural Oregon as an afterthought and get these families the assistance they’re owed.”
From Reps. Levy and Breese-Iverson
“When disaster hits one part of Oregon, it hits all of us. Central Oregon and every community battling these fires deserve the same support, the same urgency, and the same respect from the federal government. We stand together as a state, and we’re not going to stop pushing until every community gets the funding it needs.”
