BEND, OR   -- Senator Ron Wyden was briefed by local forestry officials over the weekend on how the fight against wildfires is going in the region.

Representatives from the Bureau of Land Management, the Deschutes National Forest and the Oregon Department of Forestry told the Senator the area has seen more than two hundred wildfires destroying more than 44-thousand acres.  Luckily, most were kept to under ten acres.

Senator Wyden is nervous. "Oregon is less than a month into the summer and already we're looking at a terrible trifecta -- drought, high temperatures and fuel build up on the forest floor."

Senator Wyden says his legislation that would put more funds into prevention and help avoid these large infernos is gaining traction in congress -- as lawmakers realize our firefighting system is broken.