SUNRIVER, OR -- Firefighters with the Deschutes National Forest plan to conduct more prescribed burns Thursday, if conditions remain favorable. They hope to ignite several units totaling 140 acres south of Bend and east of Sunriver; another 69 acres could be burned Friday in the same area.

Due to the location of these operations, the Oregon Department of Transportation warns drivers should be prepared for smoky conditions near Highway 97 and the Sunriver interchange.

Officials say the operations will decrease hazardous fuels accumulations within the Wildland Urban Interface near the city of Sunriver, to reduce the risk of high-intensity wildfire and reintroduce fire into a "fire adapted" ecosystem.