Oregon Public Broadcasting

The weekend's record heat wave, plus heavy winds, fueled three separate small wildfires in the Ochoco National Forest merge into one.

And smoke from the 5500 acre Bridge Creek Fire was visible from John Day to Bend on Sunday.

The firefighters near Bend were helped by several hours worth of rain early Monday.

Peter Frenzen is with the Northwest Fire Use Team on the Ochoco National Forest.

Peter Frenzen: “The big thing with the passing thunder here is the strong winds and variable winds, so our crews are having to watch for the fire moving in many directions. The good news is we're getting increased moisture, increased relative humidity, and a little bit of rainfall in places.”

Elsewhere the storms were drier -- with more lightning strikes.

Crews battling the Gnarl Ridge fire on the east side of Mount Hood worried about new smaller fires connecting with the larger fire.

No evacuations have been ordered yet, but 35 residents in Cooper Spur and  Mountain Shadow are on alert.

A handful of smaller fires also continue to burn around the state.