SALEM, Ore. (KPTV) – More than a dozen firefighters with the Oregon Department of Forestry were sent to New Mexico to help battle wildfires in that state.

ODF says most of the 19 firefighters arrived Friday and the rest will arrive within the next day.

“The two-week rotation with our New Mexico partners will allow our firefighters to brush up on their skills before Oregon’s fire season hits its peak later this summer,” ODF said in a release.

So far in 2024, Oregon has deployed:

• 48 firefighters to Texas
• 14 firefighters to Alaska
• Five firefighters to California
• Two firefighters to Tennessee
• One firefighter to Washington
• One firefighter to Florida
• One firefighter to New Mexico (this deployment is separate from the current one)

SEE ALSO:

ODF says Oregon can and has called on those same states to send firefighters and equipment when wildfires here exceed local capacity.

Two wildfires started Monday near the small town of Ruidoso, New Mexico, and have burned over 23,000 acres. President Joe Biden issued a disaster declaration, freeing up funding and more resources as crews worked to keep the flames from spreading.

Thousands of people have been displaced, and the wildfires have burned about 1,400 structures. A GoFundMe account has been set up to help those affected by the Ruidoso wildfires. You can find that fundraiser here.

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A house in Bend that sold for $2.8 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in central Oregon in the past week.

In total, 120 residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $773,672. The average price per square foot ended up at $377.

The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of June 10 even if the property may have been sold earlier.

After two seasons with the Texas A&M Aggies, it looks like Oregon Ducks’ wide receiver Evan Stewart will have a real opportunity to make a splash in Eugene. A relatively new member of the Oregon football team, Stewart joined the Ducks via the transfer portal.

And he sure is talented.

By bringing Stewart out of the SEC and to Eugene, the Oregon Ducks added a potential game-changer to their receiving corps. Stewart made an impact for the Aggies and performed well in the SEC as a young player. 

Now with a couple seasons of experience and heading into the Big Ten, Stewart has the attention of the good folks over at Pro Football Focus (PFF). Ahead of the 2024 Oregon football season, Stewart has landed on PFF’s list of wide receivers to watch (specifically as it pertains to where he could wind up in the 2025 NFL Draft).

Still, even with the NFL draft lens, that’s a noteworthy preseason accolade watch list to be on. 

Stewart is someone who has had the opportunity to demonstrate his skills and potential, but he’s really going to have a great chance to shine in Will Stein’s offense. Plus, he’ll have Dillon Gabriel chucking the ball around.

He should certainly have a shot to build upon the 91 career receptions and six career touchdowns that he accumulated at Texas A&M.

At 6-feet-tall and 175 pounds, Stewart isn’t a wide receiver who will regularly physically dominate a lot of defensive backs, but he’s got a solid frame and will be a valuable asset for Oregon’s offense as the Ducks head into this season.

During his freshman season with Texas A&M back in 2022, Stewart snagged 53 passes for 649 yards, averaging things out to 12.2 yards per reception. That’s not bad, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see Stewart involved in stretching the field a bit more.

Stewart only managed to play in eight games for the Aggies in 2023, but he did record 514 receiving yards and averaged 13.5 yards per catch. 

All that said, A&M’s offense really wasn’t all that remarkable over the past few years. And the Ducks are sure to have a much more exciting scheme that allows Stewart to experience more explosive plays. That’ll be fun for everyone involved.