Federal emergency management officials reversed course last week and approved a Fire Management Assistance Grant for the Rowe Creek Complex fire, unlocking federal funds to help cover the staggering costs of battling the 344,000-acre blaze.

With 94% of Jefferson County classified under severe drought and no relief in sight, local farmers and ranchers are navigating one of the most challenging water years in a decade. A state drought emergency declaration issued this spring has done little to offset shrinking irrigation supplies.

Jefferson County is counting ballots in a special recall election for the Madras Aquatic Center Recreation District board, after a citizens group alleged ethical and financial misconduct involving the district's leadership.

Today is the deadline to cast ballots in the Madras Aquatic Center Recreation District recall election. Voters in the district are deciding whether to remove four sitting board members after community frustration over budget deficits, pool closures, and failed levy measures.

With 94 percent of Jefferson County locked in severe drought and the Round Butte Fire burning across drought-stressed fields and grasslands west of Madras, the county’s agricultural community is facing a double blow: a season-long water shortage and now the added threat of wildfire.

More than a week after the Bench Fire ignited south of Warm Springs, tribal members are beginning to return home -- but six families have lost their homes entirely. The Confederated Tribes have declared a state of emergency and launched a recovery fund for displaced residents.

Jefferson County's agricultural community entered 2026 already bracing for a brutal irrigation season — reduced water allotments, a drought emergency declaration, and parched fields. Now with wildfires scorching the landscape and smoke blanketing crops, local farmers are facing one of the hardest seasons in recent memory.

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs issued a statement last week after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made a stop on reservation land July 23. The tribal government confirmed no tribal members were detained and emphasized that its police department does not participate in federal immigration enforcement.

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs tribal government has launched a new official Facebook page to expand its digital outreach — a move that has already proven valuable as the Bench Fire emergency unfolded across the reservation.

With a meager snowpack winter behind them and reduced irrigation allotments now in effect, Jefferson County farmers are navigating one of the toughest water years in recent memory. The North Unit Irrigation District cut allotments in March, and statewide, some Oregon irrigators face potential shutoffs as streams fall short.

A dry winter and a hot, fast summer have pushed Central Oregon into serious drought conditions this season, and Jefferson County farmers are feeling it. With irrigation water curtailments spreading across the region and reservoir levels dropping, local growers face difficult decisions about crops, livestock, and their land.