Firefighters had come from cities around the state, including Coburg, Junction, Veneta, Cottage Grove and Springfield, some having driven more than 230 miles to Brookings on Friday to help curb the wildfires.
When the crews arrived around midnight, they parked their trucks at the Brookings-Harbor High School and went to bed. When they woke up around 4:30 a.m. on Saturday for their briefing, they noticed that their two trucks were missing valuable equipment.
According to Coburg Fire Chief Chad Minter, the items were later found thrown into a pile nearby. The crews recovered their items and filed a police report. No arrests have yet been made.
Currently, there are 1,599 firefighters working to contain the massive fire that has spread near the towns of Brookings and Cave Junction.
The Oregon wildfire has burned more than 176,000 acres to the ground since it started on July 12. The state's largest recorded wildfire is only 5 percent contained as of Monday. Officials believe that it will not be contained before the end of September, according to Oregon Live.
Oregon has been suffering through multiple wildfires recently. The Indian Creek Fire began on July 4 before merging with the Eagle Creek Fires. The fires, which are burning east of Portland, have scorched almost 31,000 acres and have forced hundreds of residents to flee from their homes.
Oregon state police believe that a 15-year-old boy from Vancouver, Washington, is responsible for starting the fires.
"It is believed he and others may have been using fireworks, which started the forest fire along the Eagle Creek Trail," Oregon State Police said in a statement. "The suspect was contacted by law enforcement in the parking lot of the trailhead and cooperated with the investigation." According to police officials, no arrests have yet been made.
