The Happy Camp Complex of Fires west of Yreka, California is approaching what we have defined as “megafire” status — 100,000 acres of burned forest. As of Thursday night it has blackened 82,956 acres, a number that increases by 4,000 to 12,000 acres daily.
At a cost to date of $47.4 million, almost 3,000 people are assigned to the fire, along with 87 hand crews, 14 helicopters, 127 engines, 23 dozers, 43 water tenders, 29 mules, and 8 horses.
Some areas are still under an evacuation order.
Firefighters are hoping to keep the fire south of the Klamath River and Highway 96 between the communities of Happy Camp and Horse Creek, a goal they have mostly met, however there have been two large spot fires across the highway and the river that have been stopped. One of them was about 0.6 mile long and the other was about a tenth of a mile across.
On Thursday the fire was very active on the east side where it is burning downhill toward Scott River Road in the vicinity of Scott Bar (see the map of the fire above).
The area will remain under a Red Flag Warning through 11 p.m. Saturday due to a combination of strong winds and low relative humidity.
Type 1 IMT (Opliger) inbriefs on Sunday to assume management of the complex after transition and transfer of command.
Interesting….resupply by pack train, but yet the chopped hovers in the background. Why one over the other?
First rule of avoiding aircraft accidents is to ask the question: is this flight necessary?” If you don’t need to fly, don’t. Pack strings work well, are cost efficient, and safe.
Another spotfire across the river today near Hamburg. Discovered at the end of day shift.