Crews hope it’s a turning point against blazes
Firefighters working to carve containment lines around the most dangerous blazes threatening communities in Northern California appeared to suffer no new losses of homes Tuesday, officials said, signaling what crews hope is a turning point in fights that have dragged on for many days under scorching skies.
Still, in the most destructive of the summer’s blazes, the Carr Fire in and around Redding, the toll of damage ticked up. The count of homes destroyed since the fire ignited July 23 rose by 66, bringing the total to 884, a result of crews being able to get into disaster areas to conduct closer inspections, said the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire.
And although the Mendocino Complex — composed of the Ranch and River fires that began on Friday — mushroomed to a total of 80,408 acres, firefighters managed to increase the level of containment from 5 percent to 12 percent by Tuesday night. They also kept the
blazes, which have threatened communities set around Clear Lake’s west and north sides, from gobbling any more than the seven homes already destroyed.
“The fire laid down a little bit last night so the firefighters were able to make a little bit of headway,” Cal Fire Capt. Amy Head said at the River Fire line west of Lakeport (Lake County). “So far, we’ve been keeping the fire a pretty good distance from Lakeport city limits, but we always have to be concerned about the wind kicking up again. We still have an extremely long road ahead of us.”
The Ranch Fire, to the north of Upper Lake and other communities on Clear Lake’s north end, was also burning east and north into national forest land.
Cal Fire expects full containment of the Mendocino Complex fires by Monday, but 12,200 structures remained threatened, and mandatory evacuations were in place for more than 15,000 people in parts of Mendocino and Lake counties. No injuries or fatalities have been reported. The cause of the blazes are under investigation.
However, an additional fire popped up just east of Covelo in Mendocino County Tuesday afternoon. By Tuesday night, the blaze, named the Eel Fire, had grown to 400 acres. Cal Fire officials announced on its Facebook page Tuesday night that evacuations were in progress for Mendocino Pass Road.
Meanwhile, many residents of Redding and surrounding communities chased away by the Carr Fire began returning home Tuesday.
Mass evacuations were ordered last week — including one for the small town of Shasta Lake that turned out to be overly cautious, officials said — but, by Tuesday, firefighters had made enough progress to lift evacuation orders in several communities.
The Carr Fire grew from 103,772 acres Monday night to 112,888 acres by Tuesday night, according to Cal Fire. The blaze has burned 172.11 square miles to become the seventh most destructive wildfire in California history. By comparison, San Francisco is 46.87 square miles.
The blaze, which is 30 percent contained, has killed six people, and a total of 2,546 buildings remained under threat.
As with many of the wildfires that have sprouted throughout the state, gusty winds have posed significant challenges to crews battling the Carr Fire — particularly winds from the east and west. The steep terrain and dry vegetation have also contributed to the fire’s rapid growth, Cal Fire said, and temperatures that continue to stay hot, like Tuesday’s 95 degrees, don’t help.
There are a total of 17 wildfires burning in California. One of the longest-lasting of the summer, the Ferguson Fire near Yosemite Valley, has scorched 58,074 acres since its ignition July 13. The conflagration was 33 percent contained by Tuesday evening, according to Cal Fire, and the valley remained closed because of overwhelming smoke. The valley is now expected to open Sunday instead of Friday, officials announced.
A portion of the inferno jumped over a containment line several days ago just southeast of El Portal and crews attempted to reestablish control through water and retardant drops. The steep terrain prevented access to firefighters and beetle-killed trees fueled the blaze, officials said.
The blaze has destroyed one building and continues to threaten an additional 2,846. Two firefighters were killed and eight others suffered injuries while battling the fire.
Capt. Brian Hughes, a 33year-old firefighter from Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks, died Sunday after being hit by a falling tree. Braden Varney, a Cal Fire bulldozer operator from Mariposa, also died when his vehicle rolled down a ravine near El Portal.
Officials expect full containment of the blaze by Aug. 15.