Friday update: Here are the wildfires burning right now in Northern California
Wildfires have burned in Northern California for more than a week. Three wildfires in Siskiyou and Shasta counties — the Salt, Lava and Tennant fires — are being brought under control after prompting evacuations, closing roads and destroying structures. South of those, the Beckwourth Complex of fires has exploded in size, threatening homes in eastern Plumas County.
LATEST ON FIRES: Updates on four fires burning in Northern California
The four fires have collectively burned around 70,000 acres across Northern California. Weather forecasts for hot temperatures lasting through the weekend could hamper firefighters’ efforts and spark new blazes.
Containment appears imminent on the Lava, Tennant and Salt fires, though the latter continues to threaten residents in Shasta County. The Beckwourth Complex grew nearly eight times in size on Thursday, and continued to threaten communities in Plumas County and Lassen County,
Here are updates on Northern California’s largest blazes, as of 9 a.m. Friday:
Beckwourth Complex
The Beckwourth Complex north of Lake Tahoe increased nearly eight times in size since Thursday, charring 24,525 acres as of Friday morning. The fires, which are burning on the eastern edge of Plumas National Forest, are 11% contained.
The complex contains the Dotta Fire, which started June 30, and the Sugar Fire, which started July 2.
The fires were thought to be under control early in the week, with full containment expected Thursday. But high winds Tuesday expanded the Sugar Fire thousands of acres beyond its containment area, prompting evacuation orders in the area from Beckwourth Genesee Road to Harrison Ranch Road.
The fires grew by around 10,000 acres Thursday, and containment plummeted from 30% to 11%. As the fire expanded rapidly, evacuations orders were issued for Dixie Valley. Additional evacuations were ordered Thursday evening for residents west of Highway 395 South, from Constantia Road to Red Rock Road.
Both evacuation orders called for residents to leave their homes immediately. “If you remain emergency personnel may not be able to assist you,” read the order for Dixie Valley.
The fire flared up mid-afternoon Thursday due to winds, and expanded out of control until around 4 a.m. Friday said Mike Ferris, a spokesman for the California Interagency Incident Management Team.
Ferris expects the fire to follow a similar pattern Friday, with expansion due to winds in the early afternoon. As a heat wave hits Northern California, conditions will be even hotter, though Ferris said lower wind forecasts could mitigate the increase in temperature.
“The fire will definitely pick back up into the afternoon Friday, if it hasn’t already started,” Ferris told The Bee around 12 p.m. Friday.
On Thursday morning, the U.S. Forest Service issued an emergency fire order prohibiting non-fire personnel from entering the forest in the area of the Beckwourth Complex.
No information regarding structure damages has been released.
Salt Fire
The 10-day-old Salt Fire has charred 12,650 acres as of Friday morning. It is 45% contained.
The fire is burning in the south end of Shasta-Trinity National Forest, south of Lakehead. It grew minimally Thursday, with containment increasing from 35%, U.S. Forest Service officials said Friday.
Nearly 1,200 personnel remain assigned to the blaze, which authorities believe was started by a faulty vehicle traveling along I-5. The fire is burning along the interstate, and officials have said keeping the freeway open is a priority.
Authorities have lifted a number of evacuation orders in the region throughout the week, downgrading them to warnings. On Friday, officials lifted all evacuation warnings in Lakehead and around Delta School Road. A small number of evacuation orders and warnings in the area remain in place.
“Evacuation orders and warnings remain in place for some areas of the fire, while others are slowly being allowed to return to their homes,” said U.S. Forest Service officials in a Friday news release. “As containment lines are completed, resources from this fire may be reassigned to other fires. Initial attack crews remain vigilant to address any areas where fire may be active.”
A weekend damage assessment estimated 24 homes and 14 outbuildings were destroyed. Four more outbuildings were damaged, authorities said.
Officials said the Shasta/Tehama Chapter of the Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) will open a disaster relief center Friday for residents at the Lakehead Lions Club, 20814 Mammoth Drive, Lakehead. The center will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. Additional information is available at 211norcal.org/salt-fire-resources.
Lava Fire
The Lava Fire, which was sparked by a lightning strike June 24, remains California’s largest wildfire this season. As of Friday morning, it burned 25,159 acres and sat at 70% containment. The fire is burning on the northern fringe of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest,
Firefighters moved Thursday from fire attack to the beginning stages of mop-up, the U.S. Forest Service said in an update, and authorities have lifted all evacuations. Crews continue patrolling for hot spots and threats to the containment line, but there has been “no significant growth for several days,” officials said Friday.
On Wednesday afternoon, a contract helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing in Lake Shastina. The pilot was able to escape unharmed, the U.S. Forest Service said.
Seventeen structures have been destroyed in the fire, including 12 homes. The fire is believed to have destroyed cannabis farms in the region, many of which were run by the local Hmong population.
A Hmong man was shot to death by authorities last Monday at a road closure as tensions have grown between law enforcement officials and Hmong cannabis farmers over the mandatory evacuations.
On Saturday, 14 people were arrested by the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office for entering and refusing to leave an evacuation zone, including one who pushed an official with a vehicle and ran through a roadblock.
Tennant Fire
The Tennant Fire is burning in the Klamath National Forest in Siskiyou County, northeast of the Lava Fire. As of Friday afternoon, the fire had charred 10,580 acres and was 91% contained.
“The heat from the fire is diminishing and there’s a lot less horsepower on the fire,” officials said in a Friday update.
While temperatures are expected to heat up, fire managers do not expect any significant fire spread. “The threat to the control lines should diminish each day as any available fuel within the interior is consumed and crews increase the depth off of their mop-up,” officials said Thursday.
All remaining evacuation warnings have been lifted, according to the Siskiyou County Office of Emergency Services.
The fire has destroyed one home, one commercial building and one outbuilding since it began on June 28. No injuries or deaths have been reported.
The National Weather Service reported Wednesday that the fire generated a firenado, which showed up on radar.
Climate change and California wildfires
Wildfires have always been part of life in California. The past five years have brought some of the most destructive and deadliest wildfires in the state’s modern history.
Nearly 180 people have lost their lives since 2017. More than 41,000 structures have been destroyed and nearly 7 million acres have burned. That’s roughly the size of Massachusetts.
The 2017 wildfire season occurred during the second-hottest year on record in California and included a devastating string of fires in October that killed 44 people and destroyed nearly 9,000 buildings in Napa, Lake, Sonoma, Mendocino, Butte and Solano counties.
The following year was the most destructive and deadliest for wildfires in the state’s history. It included the Camp Fire, which destroyed the town of Paradise and killed 85 people, and the enormous Mendocino Complex.
In 2020, at least 31 people died and a record-shattering 4.25 million acres burned, according to Cal Fire.
This story was originally published July 6, 2021 at 8:58 AM with the headline "Friday update: Here are the wildfires burning right now in Northern California."