Oregon Statutes 477.123 – Volunteer fighters of wildfires
(1) As used in this section:
Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 477.123
- Department: means the State Forestry Department. See Oregon Statutes 477.001
- District: means a forest protection district organized under ORS § 477. See Oregon Statutes 477.001
- Forestland: means any woodland, brushland, timberland, grazing land or clearing that, during any time of the year, contains enough forest growth, slashing or vegetation to constitute, in the judgment of the forester, a fire hazard, regardless of how the land is zoned or taxed. See Oregon Statutes 477.001
- Operation: means any industrial activity, any development or any improvement on forestland inside or within one-eighth of one mile of a forest protection district, including but not limited to the harvesting of forest tree species, the clearing of land, the use of power-driven machinery and the use of fire, excluding, however, the culture and harvesting of agricultural crops. See Oregon Statutes 477.001
- Person: includes individuals, corporations, associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies and joint stock companies. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
(a) ‘Voluntarily’ means not undertaken as a condition of employment or with an expectation of remuneration.
(b) ‘Wildfire’ means a fire burning uncontrolled:
(A) On private forestland;
(B) On private cropland, pasture, rangeland or other private agricultural land; or
(C) That threatens a structure on agricultural land.
(2) Except as provided in subsection (4) of this section, a person who voluntarily undertakes the fighting of a wildfire is not civilly liable for any injury to person or property resulting from the good faith performance of firefighting efforts.
(3) Subsection (2) of this section applies to the performance of firefighting efforts that commence when the person arrives at the fire scene or a staging area and end when the person departs from the fire scene or staging area.
(4) Subsection (2) of this section does not apply to:
(a) Members of a volunteer fire department or fire district who have been trained in firefighting techniques; or
(b) The operation of a motor vehicle by a person. [2019 c.245 § 1; 2023 c.77 § 1]
477.123 was enacted into law by the Legislative Assembly but was not added to or made a part of ORS Chapter 477 or any series therein by legislative action. See Preface to Oregon Revised Statutes for further explanation.