September 2020 - Page 11 of 13

Creek Fire grows rapidly near Huntington Lake, California

Bill GabbertSeptember 5, 2020September 9, 2020WildfireCalifornia, Creek Fire3 Comments

Burns 36,000 acres in 22 hours

Updated September 5, 2020 | 6:42 p.m. PDT

map Creek Fire California Huntington Lake — Map showing heat detected on the Creek Fire by satellites as late as 2:23 p.m. PDT September 5, 2020.

The Creek Fire that has only been burning for about 24 hours in central California is showing explosive growth. The massive multi-layered convection column topped by pyrocumulus is extremely impressive.

(To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the Creek Fire, including the most recent, click HERE.)

The fire is on the Sierra National Forest near the community of Big Creek between Huntington Lake and Shaver Lake, 33 air miles northeast of Fresno.

At 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon the U.S. Forest Service reported it had burned 36,000 acres and 3,000 structures were threatened — 22 hours after the fire was first reported.

The fire has reached Mammoth Pool Reservoir, 7 miles north of Huntington Lake. People were trapped there with the road blocked by the fire. Click on the photo on the right below.

#CreekFire: Viewer Cameron Colombero sent in these photos from Mammoth Pool. There are reports of people trapped there. Cameron says he about 100 people are at the water edge. They are safe & the fire ran out of fuel. He says the fires burned around the entire lake in 45 mins. pic.twitter.com/LCE77t8G2z

— Michael Ikahihifo (@Mike_Ikahihifo) September 6, 2020

The smoke has been spreading rapidly north-northwest toward Lake Tahoe.

In the satellite photo taken at 5:21 p.m. PDT the smoke has reached a high enough altitude to clearly show a shadow on the east side.

Satellite photo showing smoke from fires in California at 6:01 p.m. PDT Sept 5, 2020. NASA/Wildfire Today.

Firefighters at the scene are challenged by steep rugged terrain, heavy fuel loading, and high temperatures. Additional resources have been ordered including a Type 1 Incident Management Team. Evacuations and closures are in effect.

California passes bill to allow former inmates who served on fire crews to pursue a career in fire

Bill GabbertSeptember 5, 2020UncategorizedCalifornia, inmates41 Comments

The California legislature has passed a bill, AB 2147, that would allow former prisoners who worked on inmate fire crews to pursue a career in firefighting.

The bill authored by Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes will allow nonviolent offenders who have logged time fighting fires on inmate crews while incarcerated, an opportunity to have their records expunged upon release, allowing them to become firefighters.

Released inmates who have successfully petitioned a judge to expunge their records and waive parole time, will also have the ability to apply for an emergency medical technician’s license.

Previously, California law has instructed emergency service agencies to deny EMT certification to anyone who has been convicted of two or more felonies, is on parole or probation, or has committed any kind of felony within the last decade.

COVID spreading through inmate crew camps and prisons this summer has cut the number of inmate crews available from 192 to 94. On July 9 California Governor Gavin Newsom said 12 inmate camps had to be quarantined due to the virus.

Compounding the firefighter shortage was the early release of thousands of state inmates to create more space in the facilities during the pandemic, and before that, the state’s initiative to reduce the incarceration of those jailed for lower-level offenses.

Firefighter’s family killed in structure fire

Bill GabbertSeptember 5, 2020September 8, 2020Uncategorizedfatality, Idaho, Washington2 Comments

And unrelated, a firefighter died in a vehicle accident while commuting home

Four members of firefighter’s family killed in structure fire

The wife and three children of a wildland firefighter were killed in Washington while he was deployed on a wildfire.

Marcaria Garcia-Martinez, 32, her daughters Luz Garcia-Martinez, 17, and Michelle Garcia-Martinez, 6, and son Luis Garcia-Martinez, 15, died in the early morning blaze on August 27. They had just moved and were spending their first night in the single-wide trailer in Benton City, Washington. When sheriff deputies and firefighters arrived the home was almost completely consumed. The radiant heat from the fire was so intense that a nearby trailer also ignited, but deputies were able to rescue the residents of that home. Firefighters put out the fire and found the family members’ bodies while searching the trailer.

Raul Garcia-Santos, Garcia-Martinez’s husband and the children’s father, was assigned to the Palmer Fire in north-central Washington which has burned about 18,000 acres four miles south of the Canadian border. The fire has not been updated on InciWeb since September 30.

Firefighter dies in vehicle accident while commuting home

Sara Madsen. USFS photo.

A firefighter on the Helena Hotshot crew was killed in a vehicle accident in Idaho while commuting home after a fire assignment.

From the U. S. Forest Service, Caribou-Targhee National Forest September 3, 2020:

“Sara Madsen was an incredible person with a vivacious personality and a love for the outdoors. She began working in natural resources in our very own Teton Valley as a Youth Conservation Corp member, later moving into the fire program where she served as a crewmember on the Caribou-Targhee National Forest’s Centennial Type 2 Initial Attack Hand Crew from 2017 to 2019. 2020 was her first year as part of the Helena Hot Shot crew with the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest. Our firefighting community is heartbroken over this tragic loss and our condolences go out to Sara’s family, friends and coworkers.”

The Idaho State Police released the following information:

“On September 2, 2020, at approximately 12:21 a.m., Idaho State Police investigated a single-vehicle crash on SH32 near milepost 25 south of Ashton, in Fremont County.
Sara Madsen, 24, of Tetonia, was driving eastbound on SH32 in a 1999 Ford Ranger when her vehicle went off the right shoulder of the roadway and overturned.
Madsen was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the vehicle. She succumbed to her injuries at the scene. Next of kin has been notified.”

Rest in peace, Sara Madsen, and the family of Raul Garcia-Santos.

Hot, dry weather brings elevated fire danger to much of the western U.S.

Bill GabbertSeptember 5, 2020September 5, 2020UncategorizedRed Flag Warning, smoke, weather1 Comment

Labor Day Weekend

Red Flag Warnings and Fire Weather Watches September 5, 2020.

Hot, dry and in some cases windy weather will bring elevated wildfire danger to many of the western states through the Labor Day weekend.

Southern California

Extreme heat in southern California could set all-time high temperature records with the possibility of rolling power blackouts and more wildfires. Some of the inland cities could have temperatures 10 to 20 degrees above normal through Monday. The hottest days will be Saturday and Sunday, with slightly lower temperatures Monday. Riverside could see highs of 116 on Saturday and 118 on Sunday.

SoCal Red Flag Warnings September 5, 2020 — Red Flag Warnings and Fire Weather Watches in southern California, September 5, 2020.

Red Flag Warnings are in effect Saturday for portions of Riverside and San Diego Counties through Sunday at 6 p.m. Forecasters expect east winds of 15 to 20 mph with gusts of 25 to 35 mph, with single-digit humidities in the afternoons.

Weather forecast for Riverside, California, September 5, 2020.

A Fire Weather Watch for the Los Angeles, Ventura County, and Santa Barbara mountains for Monday evening through Tuesday evening will probably be turned into a Red Flag Warning for gusty sundowner winds from the north or northeast at 15 to 25 mph with local gusts up to 40 mph Saturday, increasing to 15 to 30 mph with local gusts up to 45 mph Sunday evening and Monday evening. The strongest winds will be in the western portions of the Santa Ynez mountains and Santa Barbara south coast.

The National Weather Service did not mince any words in describing the forecast:

The very hot and unstable conditions will bring a significant threat of large plume dominated fires across the region through Labor Day.

Northwestern United States

A strong high pressure ridge centered across the western Great Basin Saturday will bring continued hot and dry conditions through the afternoon and early evening, with temperatures in the 90s and humidities below 15 percent, contributing to potentially extreme fire behavior given the very dry fuel conditions. In central Idaho and western Montana winds are expected to exceed 20-25 mph for several hours Saturday afternoon.

Smoke

Firefighters from Canada arrive in the US

Bill GabbertSeptember 3, 2020Uncategorized4 Comments

Three 20-person crews from Quebec, Canada arrived in Boise Wednesday September 2. They received a briefing orientation and participated in fire shelter deployment training. After a one-night rest in Boise, the crews will fly to Reno, Nevada and board ground transportation to their fire assignment on the North Complex in California — numerous lightning fires being managed as one incident on the Plumas National Forest.

(Photos provided by the National Interagency Fire Center)

More details about the August 31, 2020 fatality on the Mendocino National Forest

Bill GabbertSeptember 3, 2020UncategorizedCalifornia, lodd3 Comments

The U.S. Fire Administration released a notice about the August 31 death of Diane Jones on the Mendocino National Forest. She was repositioning an engine when it backed over an embankment into a fire.

The firefighters were working on the Tatham Fire, part of the August Complex of fires southwest of Red Bluff, when the vehicle accident occurred.

May she rest in peace.