FIRE HOLDING AT, GRIZZLY DOME, HIGHWAY 70 AREA
OROVILLE » The North Complex fires burning near GrizzlyDome east ofHighway 70 in Plumas County had not crossed the Feather River Canyon as of Tuesday evening
Extensive aerial and ground attacks on the north zone in the canyon prevented any hot spots crossing the road. Two helicopters worked in the afternoon drawing water from the Feather River and dropping it on the blaze east of the canyon.
The fire appeared slow moving, and it did not appear to have fully eclipsed Grizzly Dome Tunnel on Highway 70 as observed by a photographer from this newspaper.
A 7 p.m. update from the Plumas National Forest indicated that heavy monitoring of the canyon would continue all night.
Evacuation orders re
mained in place Tuesday for Concow, Pulga, Big Bend and Yankee Hill because of the North Complex West Zone fire.
Concow, Yankee Hill, Pulga and Big Bend were still under evacuation orders.
Still under the evacuation order is the area in Butte County west of OroQuincy Highway fromSeminole Drive north to the Butte County line.
The evacuation warning urging residents to be prepared to leave with a moment’s notice remains for Paradise, Magalia, and Stirling City.
Feather River Canyon
According to a Plumas National Forest Facebook update late Tuesday , the fire had reached Highway 70 but not crossed it. An air attack plane that was utilized Monday night did not detect any fire across the highway, fire officials said, and crews
and equipment are closely monitoring the west side of Highway 70.
A stretch of Highway 70 between the Butte and Plumas counties line and Tobin, including Storrie, is under evacuation orders, and the road remains closed at Cherokee Road in Butte County.
Addressing a circulated heat map that shows the fire advancing, the Plumas National Forest reported on Facebook “These heat signatures can be inaccurate due to the fact that they are taken by a satellite and the way the signatures are mapped. These maps are another useful tool that firefighters have but they are not a single source to rely on for information.”
Erratic and gusty winds on Monday pushed the fire closer to the road in the Grizzly Dome, Grizzly Creek Forebay and Elephant Butte areas, downstream from Storrie.
Hand- crews and heavy equipment and when possible aerial attacks are hitting areaswith thenewfire growth. Fire crews are also pouring support into the Bucks Lake area.
Because of the fire growth, containment of the North Complex is at 76 percent and has burned 314,043 acres.
With the new fire activity, evacuation statuses could change quickly, and noted that sheriff offices wouldbe alerting residents about evacuation notices.
In Butte County, all evacuation warnings and orders were lifted Monday for the areas of Highway 162 south toWhispering Chapel Lane, the communities of Feather Falls, Forbestown, Clipper Mills and the remaining areas south to Lake Oroville. Containment of the fire in the Forbestown area is reported to be increasing.
The evacuation warning has been lifted for the areas on both sides ofOro Quincy Highway from Whispering Chapel Lane north to Seminole Drive, the area east of Oro-Quincy Highway from Seminole Drive north to the Butte County Line, and the area of Broken Springs Road south of Ponderosa Reservoir.
According to Cal Fire, the west zone of the North Complex fire is 95 percent contained and has burned 84,595 acres.
“Containment lines on the West Zone held throughout the wind event and no further fire growth is expected,” according to a Cal Fire report. Firefighters are continuing to address hot spots and hazards.
Butte County residents who have evacuated can call theButteCounty Sheriff Office’s sheltering hotline at 530-552-6150 for assistance in finding a place to stay.
Butte County Sheriff’s Office call center is 530-5523010 for questions about the fire and evacuations.
Still operational is the Local Assistance Center at 1875 Feather River Blvd. in Oroville for disaster assistance from10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, with the same hours, is across the street at 2000 Feather River Blvd.