Update: Line Fire in Kern County containment now reaches 100%
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Updated: 9:11 a.m. April 21
First discovered: 14 hours ago, 6:28 p.m. April 20
Initial location: 33 Hwy Brown Material Rd and 33 Hwy, Lerdo Hwy, Kern County, Calif.
Fire unit: Kern County Fire Department
Fire type: Wildfire
Fire name: Line Fire
Line Fire initially started 6:28 p.m. April 20 at 33 Hwy Brown Material Rd and 33 Hwy, Lerdo Hwy, Kern County in Kern County, California.
It has burned 96 acres after being active for 14 hours, an increase of 46 acres since the last update. As of Tuesday morning, the blaze has been fully contained. The cause of it is still under investigation.
See live video from the area:
Https://ops.alertcalifornia.org/cam-console/Axis-McKittrickNorth
Fire containment
What does 100% containment mean?
Note that full containment doesn't mean the fire is completely out. In this case, it means that the whole perimeter of the wildfire has been surrounded by a control line and it is now stopped from spreading. A fully contained wildfire may continue to burn within the containment perimeter but is not likely to spread.
However, there's a significant difference between containing and controlling a wildfire. After the fire is fully contained, the next step is to control it. Controlling a fire means ensuring that the fire can't spread or cross the containment line.
Containment is part of a larger plan for managing a wildfire. It is normally expressed as a percentage and it refers to how much of the fire perimeter has been surrounded/enclosed by a control line that firefighters create. The containment percentage indicates a certain level of control, but it doesn't always correlate to safety level. Also, it's important to note that containment doesn't mean a fire is out.
How is containment measured?
The incident's central command constantly receives progress reports from firefighters on the ground. As the fireline is constructed, inspected or reinforced, mappers record those details to adjust the containment percentage. The percentage tells the public how much of the fire perimeter is believed to not go beyond the control lines.
Source: Cal Fire
United Robots Sacramento
This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 9:17 AM.