Taylorsville ordered to evacuate
Fire crews reported a successful day Friday but warn of a difficult weekend ahead as winds are expected to shift with an incoming cold front. In preparation, Taylorsville was placed under immediate evacuation orders Friday afternoon.
The evacuation order for Taylorsville came from the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office Friday afternoon. Evacuations include Arlington Road and Nelson Street.
Additional evacuations were issued in the evening for Beckwourth Genesee Road south of Antelope Lake Road to Grizzly Ridge and North of Argentine Lookout near Red Clover Valley.
South of Beckwourth Genesee Road to the northwest side of Lake Davis along Grizzly Ridge to the west and including the Walker Mine have also been placed under immediate evacuation orders.
A third release Friday evening orders evacuation on the east side of Mount Hough, east to Tower Rock and the south edge of Genesee. This includes Emigrant Road.
The Plumas County Sheriff’s Office is encouraging evacuees to head to Springs of Hope Church at 59 Bell Lane, Quincy; Holy Family Catholic Church at 108 Taylor Ave., Portola; or Veterans Memorial Hall at 449 W. Sierra Ave., Portola.
Lassen National Forest personnel also announced on Friday that fire activity in the Genessee Valley area increased from strong north winds. Personnel noted the fire crossed Genessee Valley Road.
To asses damage, a Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response team has been established by the Lassen and Plumas National Forests. The response team will begin assessments of areas burned by the Dixie Fire.
The Forest Service said the assessments are rapid evaluations of the burned area to “identify unacceptable risks on (National Forest Service) lands from post-fire threats and to assist land managers with preparing burned areas for rainstorms.”
Cal Fire incident meteorologist Joseph Goudsward said a cold front will be coming in Saturday with winds in the 20 to 30 miles per hour range. He added too much smoke will keep a lid on the fire but he expected winds to pick up regardless Friday evening into Saturday.
Fire crews from both the east and west zones of the Dixie Fire, as well as equipment and aircraft were aggressive in fighting the fire Thursday near Janesville.
After containment rose one percent overnight Wednesday and into Thursday morning, reaching 35 percent, the number has stayed still since according to Cal Fire’s incident report Friday.
Cal Fire stated in its morning briefing Friday that there was a rash in minor injuries for firefighters from exhaustion Friday.
After growing 964 acres overnight into Friday morning, Cal Fire reported the Dixie Fire grew 4,370 acres throughout the day Friday. The fire has now burned 705,000 total acres.
The Dixie Fire, which started July 13 in the Feather River Canyon near the Cresta Powerhouse, has an expected containment date which remains “to be determined.”
Cal Fire said it has tracked a total of 1,226 structures which have been destroyed by the fire, one more than reported Friday morning. After reducing the number of structures damaged to 89 Thursday night, Cal Fire reports an additional structure was reported Friday bringing the total to 90. Currently 16,085 structures in the fire zone remain threatened by the fire. That number has not changed since Wednesday.
Cal Fire reported that damage assessment is ongoing, and the numbers of damaged and destroyed structures may change as assessment teams are able to safely access the fire area.
On Wednesday, Lassen County Sheriff Dean Growden said a plan has been written to reduce the evacuation order in Westwood, Pinetown and Clear Creek to an evacuation warning, however, due to fire activity south of Highway 36 he was hesitant to put the plan in place.
Growden did not change course as of Friday morning as mandatory evacuation orders remained in the three areas. The switch to an evacuation warning would allow residents to repopulate the areas. Growden said he will continue to evaluate the situation each day with a top priority of public safety.
The fire is the secondlargest fire in state history. The largest fire in California history is 2020’s North Complex.
East Zone
Cal Fire reports aircrafts have been able to work most of the day in the northern portion of the fire. Water and retardant have been dropped on the eastern side of the fire near Janesville to limit progression towards Milford.
Across the Genesee Valley Road, the fire has moved downhill and has started spotting in multiple locations. Crews in the area are currently conducting point protection and defending lines previously created around homes.
Cal Fire said aerial retardant drops continued throughout the day Friday over the Devil’s Punchbowl spot fire as visibility allows. Crews have been unable to directly reach the area.
According to Friday evening’s incident report, the spot fire below Grizzly has grown significantly. Crews are continuing to construct dozer lines along the ridge.
Near the communication tower in the Dyer Mountain area, dozer lines were completed to limit further movement of fire activity to the northwest.
West Zone
In the west zone, Cal Fire said certain areas burned actively throughout Friday. Friday evening’s incident report said fire suppression had been successful with all containment lines holding.
Cal Fire added favorable conditions allowed for aggressive firefighting where conditions and terrain allowed.
Mop-up also continued along certain areas of the fire to mitigate any potential threat weather may present.
Crews are continuing to work together to share resources when priority fire suppression is needed.
Cal Fire noted southwest winds will continue Saturday with the arrival of another dry cold front across the region. Wind gusts are expected, increasing concerns for additional fire behavior.
While there are currently no evacuation orders in Butte County, evacuation warnings remain in effect for for the areas of Butte Meadows, Jonesville, Snag Lake and Lake Philbrook.
Evacuation warnings in Butte County include at Butte Meadows at Humboldt Road and Thatcher Ridge, up to Cherry Hill campgrounds and north to the Butte and Tehama County lines. In Jonesville the warning includes the area of Highway 32 at the Butte and Tehama County line, east to the area of Cherry Hill campground, southeast to Snake Lake, southwest to Skyway at Bull Creek, and north along Skyway to Humboldt Road. The Lake Philbrook area, which includes Philbrook Lake south to Browns Ravine Road, is also under an evacuation warning.
Cal Fire noted that evacuation warnings and orders are rapidly changing and to visit https://www. fire.ca.gov/incidents and https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/ incident/7690 for the most recent evacuation map. Growden said for the most up to date information about road closures follow Caltrans or California Highway Patrol on social media.