Police debunk social media misinformation linking Oregon wildfires to activists

Local residents cross a street as smoke from wildfires covers an area near Salem, Oregon, U.S., September 10, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

(Reuters) - Several Oregon police departments have aimed to debunk misinformation spreading on social media platforms this week, including Facebook Inc and Twitter Inc , blaming leftist and right-wing groups for wildfires raging in the state.

"Rumors spread just like wildfire and now our 9-1-1 dispatchers and professional staff are being overrun with requests for information and inquiries on an UNTRUE rumor that 6 Antifa members have been arrested for setting fires in DOUGLAS COUNTY, OREGON," read a Facebook post from the Douglas County Sheriff's Office in Oregon on Thursday. "THIS IS NOT TRUE!"