12:45 p.m. PDT August 26, 2021
The Dixie Fire near Susanville, California has burned 747,091 acres and has run up fire suppression costs of more than $365 million. At last count 690 residences and 139 commercial buildings had been destroyed. A map is available showing which structures have been surveyed for damages.
There are two areas on the fire that had large concentrations of heat when the fire was mapped Wednesday night. One was the northeast section south of Highway 44, 6 miles southeast of Old Station. After burning much of the east side of Lassen Volcanic National Park the fire ran an additional three miles north. During the 8 p.m. mapping flight Wednesday night it was a mile south of Highway 44. The fire is still very active in the center of the park and outside its northeast corner.
The other very active area on the Dixie fire is east of Taylorsville and around the Genesee Valley. Wednesday night hotshot crews continued to work the fire down off Mt. Jura to the valley bottom to secure Taylorsville. No spots have occurred. On Thursday resources will focus on holding this line. Crews have been actively engaged in structure protection in the Genesee Valley near Ward Creek and Little Grizzly Creek as the Peel Ridge spot fire backed down into the valley. They will continue this work Thursday.
(To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the Dixie Fire, including the most recent, click HERE.)
The Dixie Fire burned into the footprint of the 2019 Walker Fire, spreading for approximately a quarter of a mile inside, along 10 miles of Walker’s western perimeter.
On Thursday firefighters will construct direct and indirect line to secure fire lines in the Westwood area, which they expect will require a heavy resource presence.
Temperatures Thursday are expected to increase while winds from the north and northwest decrease to six mph out of the west-southwest. The relative humidity will be in the low 20s with very little cloud cover.
