Northern California fires: Evacuations near Willows, east Sierra amid red flag warnings

A wildfire that ignited Sunday morning forced evacuations in a small community in Northern California.

The Elk Fire, burning in Glenn County west of Willows and near Fruto, began around 150 acres and was not immediately contained.

The Glenn County Office of Emergency Services ordered evacuations for the Fruto area at 10:21 a.m., for those living near Highway 162 and County Road 303.

Fruto, which is about 85 miles northwest of Sacramento and 32 miles southwest of Chico, is rural and sparsely populated.

“If you live in this area, please do not hesitate. Evacuate,” the county Office of Emergency Services wrote on social media. The Glenn County Public Health Offices in Willows were set up as temporary shelters.

The fire came amid a heat wave bad enough to cause widespread blackouts throughout California and a red flag warning issued by the National Weather Service.

By 1 p.m. on Sunday, the fire had swelled to 727 acres and firefighters had managed to contain 15% of the blaze. All evacuations were lifted at that time.

The weather service warned of increased wildfire danger Sunday morning, and said the threat will continue through Monday morning.

The affected areas include Glenn County, but also much of the mountainous north state and parts of the Sierra Nevada.

The weather service said fires may start due to lightning strikes from a storm moving up the state from the Bay Area, bringing little or no rainfall. Sacramento on Sunday morning was seeing some scattered rain, while many in the Bay Area reported thunderstorms.

Northern California has already been subject to brutal heat for the last few days. Sacramento saw record heat two days in a row, tying a record on Friday and breaking a record on Saturday. Sunday should bring more triple-digit heat to the Valley, possibly as high as 108 degrees.

Meanwhile, the Mendocino National Forest was working to tamp out several fires started by lightning Sunday morning. At least three fires were reported after thunderstorms rolled over the forest, according to officials.

LOYALTON FIRE

Northern California was still battling another weekend blaze Sunday morning, as the Loyalton Fire in Sierra County raged on. The 20,000-acre wildfire, which is about 105 miles northeast of Sacramento and 23 miles north of Truckee, began Friday east of Loyalton.

Loyalton Fire in Sierra County

Source: National Interagency Fire Center

Several mandatory evacuations were ordered in parts of Plumas, Lassen and Sierra counties. Multiple highways were also closed to prevent travel into the fire zone.

Tahoe National Forest personnel said the fire was exhibiting “extreme fire behavior” Saturday, when weather forecasters spotted a swirling cloud in Lassen County with the potential to develop into a devastating fire-fueled tornado. The Reno office of the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning and urged residents to stay out of the area that afternoon. At the time, 60 mph winds were whipping up the clouds into a twister.

Firefighters warned of a rapid rate of spread and said the fire was consuming grass, sage and timber in the forest, and voiced concern that incoming thunderstorms could worsen the situation.

“Fire will continue to spread north, northeast and east under the current wind pattern,” Tahoe National Forest officials said. “The west flank will continue to back into wind and downhill. Possible erratic winds could be generated for thunderstorm outflows causing spread in all directions.”

The National Weather Service said the thunderstorms are expected to dissipate later Sunday afternoon.