Blazes again threaten Humboldt County
Fire closes SR36 at the Humboldt-Trinity county line
Evacuation warnings for the north and west zones of the August Complex Fire were announced over the weekend as fire activity increased and the blazes consumed more ground.
In total, the August Complex Fire — the largest in modern California history — is steadily approaching 900,000 acres and was 45% contained. Thousands of Cal Fire, U.S. Forest Service and California National Guard personnel continue to fight the massive lightning-ignited blaze that is again threatening areas in Humboldt County.
The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services re-established its wildfire evacuations telephone line over the weekend. Residents can call 707-268-5000 for the latest information.
The north zone of the fire forced the closure of state Route 36 at the Humboldt-Trinity county line. The closure extends to Bowman Road in Tehama County, according to Caltrans.
Evacuation warnings
The north zone and the west zones of the August Complex spurred evacuation warnings in Humboldt County,
Residents in all areas east of Alderpoint Road from Showers Pass Road to Harris Road and all areas east of Harris Road from Alderpoint Road to Pipe Creek are asked to be ready to evacuate if necessary because of the rapidly changing conditions in the north zone. Monday afternoon, the county added the Fort Seward community to the list of those with evacuation warnings. It’s possible the warnings will change to orders Monday, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
In the west zone, areas east of Bell Springs Road to the Trinity County line and south of
Pipe Creek to the Mendocino County line are asked to be ready to evacuate from the “rapidly evolving wildfire conditions related to the August Complex West Zone,” the sheriff’s office stated.
The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services tweeted Monday that residents should have a plan for pets and livestock.
“The #AugustComplexFire is evolving rapidly to the east of Humboldt County. Residents with animals in the areas of Blocksburg, Fort Seward and Alderpoint should make plans now to move livestock and domestic animals in preparation for a possible evacuation order,” the office posted on Twitter.
“When an evacuation order is issued, residents will not be allowed to return to the area until it is deemed safe,” the office added. “The county of Humboldt will not be issuing special access passes while the area remains threatened by active fire.”
There are currently no evacuation warnings for areas around the Red Salmon Complex Fire, which is burning about 15 miles northeast of Willow Creek. The fire complex is more than 116,000 acres and had 31% containment Monday morning.
Weather
Much of the North Coast is under a red flag warning, the National Weather Service reported.
“Gusty east and northeast winds, very low humidity and extremely dry fuels will result in critical fire weather conditions (Monday),” the advisory states.
The red flag warning is in effect through 9 p.m. Monday, according to National Weather Service Eureka meteorologist Scott Carroll.
Temperatures across the North Coast were higher than normal Monday. Crescent City broke a heat record set in 1921 before noon Monday. The record for Crescent City was 87 degrees. By noon it was already 93 degrees.
Eureka also broke the heat record set in 1945 of 79 degrees. Just before 2 p.m., the Woodley Island-based NWS reported the temperature hit 86 degrees.
But the smoke surrounding the coast on Monday was keeping weather cooler, Carroll said.
“The good news is that the temperatures are going to be gradually coming down, especially later in the week, but they are still going to be above normal over inland areas,” he said.
Air quality
In Humboldt County, an advisory was issued for Hoopa, Weitchpec and Willow Creek, which are expected to have “unhealthy to very unhealthy conditions over the next 24 hours,” according to the North Coast Unified Air Quality Management District.
Along the coast from Rio Dell to Trinidad, the air quality is expected to be moderate. That also applied to Redway and Garberville in Southern Humboldt.