Northern California fires continue to burn in high heat, gusty wind. Several firefighters injured
Lightning strikes, high temperatures and gusty winds are challenging fire crews across Northern California as they tackle new blazes popping up and continue to suppress older fires.
More than a dozen firefighters have suffered minor injuries — some due to heat stress — in recent days during operations at various fires, authorities said, including the Gold Complex, the Hill Fire, the Maria Fire and the Shelly Fire.
Crews made progress containing the longest-burning wildfire in the state at the moment, the Shelly Fire, Cal Fire reported Wednesday.
Gold Complex Fire
Where: Plumas County/Plumas National Forest, Beckwourth Ranger District
Size: 3,007 acres across four fires
Status: 0% contained
Injuries: 1 firefighter
A thunderstorm in eastern Plumas County caused four fires to break out Monday afternoon, which were grouped into the Gold Complex on Monday evening. One firefighter was reportedly injured Tuesday.
The thunderstorm created multiple lightning strikes in the area, kindling the three Mill fires and the Smith Fire at around 2:45 p.m., according to the U.S. Forest Service. The complex has grown quickly, from 700 acres Monday night to more than 3,000 acres by late Wednesday morning. It has been fueled by winds, sloping hills and ample dry grasses in the area, according to a U.S. Forest Service report on social media.
Roughly 1,000 residents in the Portola and Gold Mountain areas are currently threatened by the complex of wildfires, Freeman said, and numerous evacuation orders remained in place as of Wednesday.
Forest Service fire crews at Plumas National Forest are at the helm of the fire suppression operation, and California Interagency Incident Management Team 10 took command of the fires early Wednesday morning, the Forest Service said.
A firefighter suffered a heat-related injury in the fight Tuesday, but was treated and returned to the fire line, according to Adrienne Freeman, a spokesperson for the Forest Service.
In a social media release, the U.S. Forest Service said the three Mill fires consolidated into one larger fire Tuesday evening. As of 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, it has torched 2,802 acres near Whitehawk Ranch, while the Smith Fire, burning north of Highway 70 near Mabie, accounted for 56 acres, the Forest Service reported. Both are still uncontained.
Forest Service officials reported that crews were battling the Mill Fire with “aggressive” suppression actions around the clock, with helicopters dropping water over hot spots Wednesday night while crews built bulldozer and hand lines to protect buildings and power lines in the area.
Lines around the Mill and Smith blazes are expected to be fortified throughout the day Wednesday, but wind gusts may threaten these efforts, Freeman said.
Temperatures on Wednesday were expected to stay above 90 degrees, but a “cooling trend” is anticipated to start later in the day and continue into the weekend. Gusty winds and chances of thunderstorms in the area may persist, the forest service reported Wednesday morning.
Evacuation orders were called for 10 zones in Plumas County, including areas south of the Feather River running through Portola down to the Mill Fire, as well as the zone where the Smith Fire is burning, according to an online evacuation map by sheriff’s officials. An evacuation center is open at Quincy High School at 6 Quincy Junction Road, and animals can be evacuated to the Plumas-Sierra County Fairgrounds.
Numerous zones near Lake Davis, between the Mill and Smith fires and south into Sierra County were under evacuation warnings Wednesday afternoon.
National Forest land north and east of Highway 89, south of Highway 70 and east of County Road A23 is closed, according to the forest service, and Highway 89 is closed from County Road A15 to Calpine, California Highway Patrol’s Quincy office posted on social media.
Ridge Fire
Where: Border of Colusa and Lake counties
Size: 2,756 acres
Status: 40% contained
The Ridge Fire, which broke out Saturday afternoon near Walker Ridge Road and Highway 20, has slowed its growth, but increased to 40% containment Wednesday morning.
According to Cal Fire spokesperson Will Powers, crews increased the fire’s containment by 5% overnight. Through Wednesday, crews will reinforce control lines around the blaze, begin mopping up extinguished areas and repair places damaged by fire suppression efforts, Cal Fire reported.
No injuries have been reported from the Ridge Fire and no buildings were damaged or destroyed.
Fifty structures remain threatened by the blaze Wednesday afternoon, Cal Fire reported. Evacuation orders in Colusa County were still in place at Bear Valley Road to Highway 20, Wilbur Springs Road and Walker Ridge Road Wednesday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.
All evacuation orders in Lake County have been reduced to warnings or lifted completely as of Monday afternoon, according to a Facebook post by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. Zones CLO-E022, CLO-E070, CLO-E089 and CLO-E083 were still under a warning Wednesday afternoon.
Road closures in Colusa County remained active at Leesville Lodoga Road and Bear Valley Road to Highway 20 on Wednesday, Powers said.
Shelly Fire
Where: Siskiyou County, near Shelly Lake
Size: 15,656 acres
Status: 62% contained
Injuries: Seven firefighters
The Shelly Fire is the state’s longest-lasting fire as of Wednesday, having broken out on July 3. It has reached more than 15,000 acres and has been increasing in containment over the last two days.
On Wednesday morning, the fire was more than 60% contained, up from 48% containment on Monday morning, according to Cal Fire’s website.
The agency reported that the wildfire has remained within the control lines established at the perimeter, and that crews expect it to consume fuels within the interior as winds gust in the area.
On Wednesday, crews are focusing on repairing roads and trails that were damaged by fire suppression work, the agency said. There is a 30% chance of thunderstorms in the area, and winds may change fire behavior Wednesday, but they are not expected to impact containment lines, according to Cal Fire.
Seven firefighters were injured throughout the ongoing 21-day suppression operation, and 1,112 structures remain threatened, but the fire has not damaged or destroyed any structures, according to Cal Fire.
Evacuation orders are still in place for zones SIS-2200-A, SIS-2203-B and SIS-2301, and zones surrounding these were still under an evacuation warning Wednesday.
South Kidder Creek Road at Kidder Creek Camp and North Kidder Creek Road at Mile Post Marker 3.75 remained closed as of Wednesday afternoon.
Other fires
Maria Fire
The Maria Fire started just after midnight on Tuesday south of Mokelumne Hill in Calaveras County. By late Tuesday evening, the fire had burned 65 acres and crews were able to reach 15% containment.
The fire did not grow overnight, but crews were able to increase containment to 20% thanks to cooler weather, Cal Fire said Wednesday.
Cal Fire reported “some minor firefighter injuries” Tuesday evening, some of which requiring air evacuation due to the steep terrain on the fire lines. The number of firefighters who were removed from the fire line was not reported.
Evacuation orders still were in place Wednesday afternoon for zones CCU-030-A and CCU-042-B, with warnings called for zone CCU-029.
An evacuation shelter is open at Valley Springs Veterans Hall at 300 West Daphne Street in Valley Springs. Small animals can be evacuated to the veterans hall building at 189 Pine Street in Valley Springs, and large animals can be taken to the Calaveras County Fair & Jumping Frog Jubilee at 101 Frogtown Road in Angels Camp.
Hill Fire
The Hill Fire has been burning in northeast Humboldt County, near Willow Creek, for just over a week as of Wednesday, and has injured five firefighters working on suppression.
The wildfire, which started July 16, has burned 6,623 acres and was 10% contained Wednesday afternoon. No civilians have been injured and no buildings are threatened, damaged or destroyed.
Cal Fire reported in an update Wednesday morning that crews will focus on extinguishing a spot of the blaze on Sugarloaf Mountain, while other crews mop up and patrol control lines on the western end of the perimeter.
Roads are closed through U.S. Forest Service land in the area, including Friday Ridge Road along numerous Forest Service roads down to Route 1 and Berry Summit at Titlow Hill Road.
Redwood Acres in Eureka is being used as a Cal Fire base camp for the Hill Fire, and is closed to the public. Harris Street at Hubbard Lane and Hall Avenue at Myrtle Avenue are closed as a result of the camp’s activation.
Four zones — HUM-E076-A, HUM-E077-A, HUM-E077-B and HUM-E077-C — were still under evacuation orders Wednesday afternoon, with seven surrounding zones in Humboldt County under an evacuation warning.
An evacuation shelter is open at Trinity Valley Elementary School at 730 CA-96 in Willow Creek.
