Wildfire updates: Dixie Fire passes 700,000 acres; Caldor Fire slows but remains uncontained 

The Caldor Fire, burning in Eldorado National Forest, slowed slightly heading into Friday morning after exploding in growth and destroying over 100 buildings this week.

Although a change in weather tamped down some flames, the Caldor Fire remained 0% contained Friday morning and has the potential to flare up significantly as gusty conditions return this weekend. Farther north, the massive Dixie Fire has shown the danger of winds as it grew over 100,000 acres since Tuesday amid red flag conditions.

Wind and dry weather earlier this week caused blazes across Northern California to flare up, most dramatically at the Caldor Fire, which grew 10 times in size over a four-day stretch. Red flag warnings were in effect across nearly the entire northern portion of the state from Tuesday through Thursday.

The Caldor Fire spanned 73,415 acres Friday morning, up 8,000 acres from the previous morning. In a Thursday evening incident update, Cal Fire said that a strong inversion layer — a layer of hot air high up in the atmosphere — kept fire activity low through much of the day. Activity picked up Thursday evening and into the night as the warm air lifted.

And Cal Fire officials warned in a Friday morning incident update that fuel conditions still pose a major risk for the blaze.

“With historic drought conditions there is heavy dead and down fuels through the fire area,” the state fire agency wrote. “Northern California remains under fuels and fire behavior advisory.”

Although crews got a brief respite from the wind Friday, the National Weather Service announced a new round of red flag warnings that will go in place at the blaze from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. Southwest winds are expected to pick up across the entirety of the fire.

“Southwest winds will increase Saturday morning, continuing into the early evening hours,” wrote NWS Sacramento in its red flag warning Friday. “These winds combined with low humidity and continued extremely dry fuels could cause critical fire weather conditions in the vicinity of the Caldor Fire.”

The Caldor Fire is burning near populated areas such as Pollock Pines, Grizzly Flats and Kyburz, and has forced over 23,000 residents to evacuate. Cal Fire estimated Friday morning that the blaze has destroyed 104 structures, but said that estimates were subject to change as damage assessments continue. In Grizzly Flats, the fire charred homes, a post office, a church and an elementary school.

In recognition of the increased threat to populated areas, Cal Fire moved 30 engines from the more remote Dixie Fire to the Caldor Fire earlier in the week.

“We are moving resources around as needed. ... It’s a surge, kind of, to where the greatest need is,” Cal Fire director Thom Porter said. Wednesday

Still, Porter acknowledged that the Dixie Fire is “exceedingly resistant to control” and “not going to end anytime soon.”

Dixie Fire

The Dixie Fire grew to 700,630 acres (1,094 square miles) Friday morning as hot and dry air propelled the fire to burn actively overnight. The fire now spans an area larger than Sacramento County and has charred an area twice the size of the city of Los Angeles.

Thousands of personnel are battling the wildfire as it burns primarily in Butte, Plumas and Lassen counties. Despite growth of over 22,000 acres between Thursday and Friday, crews were able to hold containment at 35%.

A red flag warning lifted at the blaze Thursday, but Cal Fire said in a Friday morning incident report that dry weather and fuel conditions are still creating the potential for significant fire activity. The fire’s growth Friday will depend on the smoke cover, which could keep the fire damped down if it remains over the blaze.

Fire behavior analyst Brian Newman said in a Friday morning incident briefing that wind patterns may cause the smoke to lift, allowing the blaze to flare up once more.

“Every time that we’ve had smoke over the incident and it starts to thin, we’ve seen an increase in activity,” Newman said. “So expect that same thing to happen again today.”

Newman also warned that a shift in winds forecast for Friday afternoon could expose new fuel and allow the fire to burn in unexpected places.

Early in the week, the blaze appeared to be headed toward the city of Susanville, the seat of Lassen County and home to around 15,000 residents. But a change in wind Wednesday kept the blaze at bay for the time being.

A major spot fire to the east of the main blaze is also threatening the town of Janesville, which is home to just under 1,500 people. Winds caused the spot fire to expand significantly Thursday, and crews are struggling to contain it as it moves west toward the main portion of the blaze.

“Aircraft with retardant, dozers, and crews maintained aggressive engagement on the portion of the fire near Janesville,” wrote Cal Fire in its Friday morning report. “Firefighters are being challenged by spots outside the line and steep, inaccessible terrain.”

The Dixie Fire has destroyed more than 1,225 buildings, at least 652 of which were homes, according to Cal Fire. It largely leveled the town of Greenville earlier this month.

Earlier in the week, Plumas County officials lifted evacuation orders for much of the Lake Almanor basin, allowing residents to return home for the first time in a month. But a sprawling list of evacuation orders still remains, largely in Plumas County but also areas of Lassen and Tehama counties. Voluntary evacuation warnings are in effect for some Butte County communities. Lassen Volcanic National Park in Shasta County is closed.

Detailed information on evacuation zones and closures is available via Cal Fire’s incident webpage.

The Dixie Fire’s cause officially remains under investigation, but PG&E in a filing to state regulators acknowledged the involvement of its equipment, writing that an employee spotted a “healthy green tree” leaning against a conductor on one of the utility company’s power poles.

No fatalities have been reported in connection with the Dixie Fire. At least three first responders have been injured, Cal Fire says.

More than 5,690 firefighters were assigned to the incident Friday morning.

Other California wildfires

▪ The Monument Fire, burning in Trinity County, grew to 142,250 acres Friday morning, marking a 7,000-acre increase from Thursday morning. Containment remains at 10%.

Mandatory evacuations are in effect for numerous communities: Junction City, Red Hill, Canyon Creek, Coopers Bar, Big Bar, Del Loma, Big Flat, Helena, Cedar Flat, Burnt Ranch and part of Hayfork.

Earlier in the week, Trinity County officials issued a large-scale evacuation warning for an area that includes the towns of Weaverville, Douglas City and the rest of Hayfork. The towns are collectively home to over 6,000 residents.

The fire began in late July due to a lightning strike.

▪ The McFarland Fire, which began in the same lightning storm as the Monument Fire, spanned 115,996 acres Friday morning with 52% containment. The fire grew just under 5,000 acres from Thursday to Friday.

Evacuation orders are in place from the township of Platina and in the area of Highway 36, Pettyjohn and Bowman roads. Highway 36 is closed between Highway 3 and Bowman Road.

The Forest Service says at least 11 people have been injured by the McFarland Fire.

▪ The Cache Fire began Wednesday afternoon in the city of Clearlake in Lake County. Crews stopped forward progress at around 80 acres Wednesday afternoon after an apartment complex and a few residential blocks were forced to evacuate.

In a Thursday evening incident briefing, Lake County officials said that the blaze was not likely to expand farther. But the fire, which burned in a densely populated suburban area, destroyed 56 homes and 81 outbuildings during it initial ignition Wednesday, officials said.

The fire raged through a number of city blocks as well as a mobile home park.

The blaze remained just under 80 acres as of Thursday evening and was 40% contained, Cal Fire reported.

This story was originally published August 20, 2021 at 9:25 AM with the headline "Wildfire updates: Dixie Fire passes 700,000 acres; Caldor Fire slows but remains uncontained ."