Oregon opens first mobile morgue amid wildfires

Oregon state officials are operating their first mobile morgue in response to the wildfires that continue to ravage the West Coast.

The Oregonian reported Tuesday that the morgue has been stationed in Linn County, where it is being used to ease the burden on local health officials and allow remains to be identified expeditiously.

Dozens of state officials are working with the mobile unit, according to the newspaper. Funding for the program was approved more than a decade ago, but the program was unused until now.

Oregon’s Office of Emergency Management told the Oregonian that 22 state residents are confirmed missing as of Tuesday, while eight deaths have been confirmed so far.

Separate media reports indicated that around 40,000 Oregonians are under evacuation orders due to wildfires that have burned more than 1 million acres statewide.

The state’s governor, Kate Brown (D), said at a news conference Monday that Oregon “has been pushed to its limits” by the fires and added that she would seek a disaster declaration from President Trump.

News of the mobile morgues come as several cities on the West Coast including Portland, Ore., Seattle and Los Angeles are among the 10 worst metro areas worldwide for air quality due to the natural disaster. 

Images have surfaced through media reports and on social platforms showing glowing orange skies — the smoke from the fires casting a darkness over the area and blocking out the sun. 

Meteorologists in the area say that it will take a specific kind of weather to remove the smoke and clean the air.  

Portland National Weather Service meteorologist Tyler Kranz said a strong inland wind off the ocean will be necessary to rid the state of smoke. 

“We need the winds to get the smoke out of here,” he said. “We just don’t want them to be too strong, because then they could fan those flames and all of a sudden those fires are spreading again.”