Winds blow, 30K acres burn
Red Flag wind conditions brought large fire growth Tuesday. Cal Fire reported in the Tuesday morning incident update an additional 29,655 acres burnt.
With the continued fire spread, new evacuation warnings were ordered in Lassen County on Monday evening. Residents living north of Highway 44 from Forest Route 33NO2 east to County Road A21 and north to Crater Lake Campground are being asked to leave immediately.
An evacuation warning has also been issued for Antelope Mountain and Campbell Mountain area east of County Road A21 and west of County Road A1.
In Butte County, all evacuation warnings have been lowered.
The areas formerly under warning in Butte County included 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 included 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. Residents of the Lake Philbrook area, which includes Philbrook Lake south to Browns Ravine Road, are also no longer under evacuation warnings.
In Tehama County, the final evacuation orders in the county were reduced to warnings on Monday as well while Highway 36 which has been closed due to fire activity reopened at noon Monday.
While orders change for the positive in Butte and Tehama counties, Plumas County received two new evacuation orders on Monday. The orders are for north of Lake Davis from the intersection of Beckwourth-Taylorsville Road and the Bagley pass Road, north to Zone 31. The second evacuation order is for Lake Davis, north of Lake Davis Road to Gate Place, including all sides of Lake Davis.
Conditions
Red Flag wind conditions are expected to be present throughout the beginning of the week in both the east and west zones of the fire.
Containment of the fire is currently at 48 percent.
The fire grew an additional 29,655 acres Tuesday Cal Fire reported, bringing the total acres burnt to 807,396 acres.
There were no changes to structures affected Tuesday, Cal Fire reported. The total number of destroyed structures sits at 1,277. The total number of damaged structures is 92. There are 13,614 structures threatened by the fire. Structures threatened by the fire rose by 2,125 since Monday.
East zone
Low relative humidity and Red Flag warnings will continue Tuesday and are forecasted to continue through the evening.
In the Mount Ingalls and Red Clover Creek areas, strong southwest winds are expected to increase fire activity similar to Monday.
Fire Crews have continued working on dozer lines along Grizzly Ridge as they hold the line on the western side. Contingency dozer lines are being constructed in the Squaw Queen Creek area to help drive the fire from the North Lake Davis area up into the Walker Fire scar where fuel loads are lighter.
Mop up continues around homes in Genesee Valley and into Taylorsville with tactical patrols responding to any smoke reports and actively looking for hot spots.
New contingency lines are being added between the fire, Greenhorn, Portola and the communities further south all the way around North Lake Davis to protect homes.
West zone
In the west zone, fire crews are continuing to actively fight fire as the strong winds continue. Extreme fire behavior is expected.
Cal Fire reported crews working in the Lassen Volcanic National Park continue to work just off the fire’s edge, reducing fuels and improving containment lines.
Firefighters continue to improve and construct primary, secondary, and contingency lines, as well as reduce fuels in the area north of the fire’s edge.
Additionally, the Union Pacific Fire Train is working to protect critical infrastructure. Cal Fire predicts a critical fire weather pattern will continue, with Red Flag warnings in effect due to gusty southwest winds and low, single digit, relative humidity.
Aircraft will continue to provide support as conditions allow.
Other crews in the area are continuing to patrol fire lines, reinforce primary control lines and establish secondary and contingency lines.
The active fire is still burning in areas with steep and rugged terrain making it difficult for crews to reach directly.
With evacuation orders lifted allowing some residents to return home, those returning are strongly encouraged to remain vigilant to current conditions.
Cal Fire said some residents may see smoke coming from trees and stumps for days following their return. If residents are concerned about any active flames, they are encouraged to call 911 and not attempt to extinguish them.
For the most up to date information about road closures follow Caltrans or California Highway Patrol on social media. A full view of the fires burning across California can be found by visiting https://www.fire. ca.gov/incidents.
While orders change for the positive in Butte and Tehama counties, Plumas County received two new evacuation orders on Monday. The orders are for Lake Davis from the intersecction of Beckwo ur th Taylor svil le Road and the Bag leyp ass Road, north to Zone 31. The second order is for Lake Davis, north of Lake Davis Road to Gate Place, including all sides of Lake Davis.