Windy Fire now officially 100 percent contained

At least the most recent major fire in the Sequoia National Forest didn’t last into two years.

Sequoia National Forest reported early Monday morning the Windy Fire was officially 100 percent contained. The fire burned 97,528 acres in the Sequoia National Forest, including the Giant Sequoia National Monument, and the Tule River Indian Reservation.

Lightning from a storm in the area ignited the fire on September 9, so the fire lasted a little more than two months. Two recent storms helped the fire reach 100 percent containment in rugged areas where the fire was still burning that was inaccessible to firefighters.

The Windy Fire lasted a much shorter amount of time than the Sequoia Complex which was a small fire that began at 5 acres on August 19, 2020. But that fire eventually erupted into the most devastating fire in Tulare County history, burning 170,000 acres. It’s estimated that fire destroyed 10 to 14 percent of the world’s Giant Sequoias. That fire wasn’t also considered 100 percent contained until January 5, 2021.

The Windy Fire has also destroyed at least hundreds of Giant Sequoias based on early assessments. Assessments on just how much damage the fire did will continue through the spring.

The fire burned through 11 Giant Sequoia groves in the Sequoia National Forest and Tule River Reservation. The fire also burned around the Trail of the 100 Giants and officials credit active management with saving the Trail of the 100 Giants virtually in tact.

Thousands of firefighting personnel were devoted to the fire at its height. As of November 1, 100 firefighting personnel were still assigned to the fire.

The forest service stated fire suppression repair work continues, including “a series of immediate post-fire actions taken to repair damages and minimize potential soil erosion and im

pacts resulting from fire suppression activities. Priorities include repair of hand and dozer fire lines, roads, trails, staging areas, safety zones, and drop points used during fire suppression efforts.”

Additional assessments have done by the Burned Area Emergency Response, BAER, team, which assesses factors such as the chance of flooding that may result for soil erosion as a result of the fire. “An effort to identify imminent post-wildfire threats to human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources,” continues, the forest service stated.

“Coordination between the BAER team and local personnel is ongoing.” Information about the effort can be found at https://inciweb.nwcg. gov/incident/7866/

Forest Service managed land burned in the Windy Fire remain closed under a Forest area closure. Information on that closure can be found at https://www. fs.usda.gov/alerts/sequoia/alerts-notices

Closed roads include Western Divide Highway (M107) near Ponderosa, M99 at Lloyd Meadow Road, and Parker Pass (M50) at Parker Meadow above California Hot Springs.

“Fire hazards continue to pose an immediate threat, keeping the area closed until further notice,” the forest service stated.