MALIN, Ore. — One year ago, as wildfires tore through the Willamette Valley, ranchers in the Klamath Basin extended a helping hand by donating more than 170 tons of hay to feed displaced livestock from burned pastures.

With drought and fires now scorching Southern Oregon, the favor is being returned.

Hay, feed and other donations from across the state arrived Aug. 14 to assist those same producers who received no irrigation water this summer, as well as victims of the 413,717-acre Bootleg Fire that has destroyed 161 homes and thousands of acres of grazing land.

Like 2020, the event was organized by #TimberUnity and delivered via what has become the group’s signature flourish — a large convoy.

Trucks left the Portland area at 4 a.m., Eugene at 6 a.m. and reached Malin — a small community south of Klamath Falls along the California border — by 10 a.m.

“These are our farmers, and they need help,” said Tasha Webb, #TimberUnity secretary and chair of the group’s disaster relief committee. “The donations have just been amazing.”

Once in Malin, the hay and feed was delivered to Fred Simon’s farm where he assisted with drop-off and pickup.

Simon, who grows hay and grain, said the basin is experiencing a crisis after the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced in May it would allocate zero water for the Klamath Project. The allocation normally irrigates approximately 200,000 acres of farmland.

Without water for their pastures, Simon said ranchers are struggling to feed their animals and, in some cases, are selling off entire herds to survive.

“They’re using up their quota of hay for the winter,” Simon said. “If they had water for their pastures, we wouldn’t be in this situation right now.”

As a member of the Tulelake Irrigation District, Simon said he has some access to district wells, allowing him to grow a portion of his normal crop. Others, he said, aren’t so lucky.

#TimberUnity is vetting producers in the area to make sure the hay gets to those who most need it, Simon said.

This is the second convoy to travel to the basin — the first, which arrived July 24, brought nearly 200 tons of feed.

Since then, Webb said donations have continued to pour in from all over the state, prompting the second convoy.

“Just the generosity of what we call the #TimberUnity family,” Webb said, “it never ceases to amaze me how much they give.”

Along with hay for ranchers, Webb said #TimberUnity began collecting donations for victims of the Bootleg Fire on July 24. The group distributed 78 Blue Barrels in 40 communities, where people could drop off things like camping equipment, rubber boots, generators and batteries.

Webb said they have teamed up with Cascade Relief Team to collect the barrels and bring donations to the Bly Fire Department, where a resource center was established for victims.

One family even donated an RV, which Webb said will be given away to a young couple that lost their home in the blaze.

Over the last two years, #TimberUnity has spearheaded multiple donation events to assist rural communities reeling from natural disasters.

In February, the organization also collected loads of firewood for homes that lost power during winter storms that dumped snow and ice over parts of the Northwest.

“It’s just a little group of people who are out saving the state all the time,” Webb said with a chuckle. “The donations just come pouring in, whether it’s materials or people giving us money or hauling hay. It never stops.”