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Hog Fire burns more than 5,000 acres west of Susanville, CA

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags , 1 Comment on Hog Fire burns more than 5,000 acres west of Susanville, CA

Mandatory evacuations are in effect

UPDATED at 4:46 p.m. PDT July 20, 2020

Hog Fire
Satellite photo of the Hog Fire area Monday afternoon. The red area represents heat detected by the satellite. NASA.

Much of the smoke from the Hog Fire west of Susanville, CA is remaining in the general area.

Updated at 4:14 p.m. PDT July 20, 2020

Hog Fire, from Hamilton Mountain Susanville California
Hog Fire west of Susanville, California, as seen from Hamilton Mountain looking northeast at 4:13 p.m. MDT July 20, 2020.

UPDATED at 5:16 p.m. PDT July 20, 2020

pyrocumulus cloud over the Hog Fire Susanville California
A pyrocumulus cloud created by the Hog Fire, as seen from Dyer Mountain looking northeast at 3:25 p.m. MDT July 20, 2020.

Several of the AlertWildfire cameras near the Hog Fire west of Susanville, California have little to no visibility due to smoke, but the Dyer Mountain 1 cam further to the southwest has a good view of the top of a pyrocumulus cloud generated by the fire.

The weather forecast for the next 24 hours indicates conditions favorable to continued fire spread. The prediction for Monday afternoon is for 95 degrees, relative humidity 13 percent, and winds out of the northwest at 9 to 16 mph. Monday night the wind will continue to be out of the northwest at 5 to 9 mph, the temperature will drop to 64 degrees by sunrise, and there will be poor humidity recovery, rising during the night only to 40 percent.

A Red Flag Warning is predicted for Tuesday when the forecast calls for 95 degrees, 13 percent RH, and 3 to 10 mph winds from the southeast in the morning shifting to come from the southwest and west in the afternoon. There is a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon.

(Originally published at 10:55 a.m. PDT July 20, 2020)

Hog Fire Susanville California
Hog Fire, looking northeast from Hamilton Mountain at 7:36 p.m. PDT July 19, 2020. AlertWildfire photo, via @CAFireScanner.

The Hog Fire has prompted mandatory evacuations in northern California west of Susanville. By Sunday night it had burned 5,800 acres of land protected by the Lassen National Forest and the state of California. At 3:30 a.m. July 20 the fire was about one mile west of a housing development on the west side of the William D. McIntosh Highway (A1) and five miles west of Susanville. It has spread approximately 5 miles to the east since it started and is on both sides of Highway 44. Steep terrain and spot fires ahead of the main fire are complicating efforts of firefighters.

Resources assigned Sunday night included 25 fire engines, 8 hand crews, 15 dozers, 15 water tenders, 4 helicopters, and 6 air tankers.

The Facebook page for the Lassen County Sheriff’s office has details on evacuations. Anyone without internet capabilities can get information by calling (530) 282-5714.

An update from CAL FIRE at 9:30 a.m. Monday stated that no structures had been damaged or destroyed.

Map of the Hog Fire Susanville California
Map of the Hog Fire. The white line was the perimeter determined during a fixed wing mapping flight at 11:54 p.m. PDT July 19. The red dots represent heat detected by a satellite at 3:30 a.m. July 20, 2020.

After the mapping flight at 11:54 p.m. July 19 a shift in the wind pushed a portion of the southern perimeter to the south toward Highway 36.

Chaos on Interstate 15 as wildfire snarls traffic in Utah

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags
Cottonwood Trail Fire
The view from inside a car trapped in a traffic jam caused by the Cottonwood Trail Fire. Screenshot from video by Griffin Hunt.

A wildfire that spread across Interstate 15 prompted evacuations and caused a massive traffic jam as motorists drove within feet of a rapidly spreading fire nine miles northeast of St George, Utah Sunday.

The Cottonwood Trail Fire started about 3 p.m. on the west side of the Interstate and burned across the four-lane divided highway blackening 3,000 acres before being stopped by firefighters on the ground and in the air. Resources assigned included three large air tankers, four helicopters, and 30 fire engines.

Cottonwood Trail Fire map
Map showing the location of the Cottonwood Trail Fire at 3:18 p.m. MDT July 19, 2020.

Both northbound and southbound lanes were eventually closed temporarily due to the fire, but perhaps a little too late. All evacuations have been lifted. A Type 3 Incident Management Team was slated to assume command of the fire Monday morning.

Videos showed traffic at times stopped or slowed to a crawl as the fire burned intensely near vehicles. Some were abandoned and the passengers rescued by others.

The video below by Griffin Hunt shows the chaos as vehicles inched past flames and became trapped in the traffic jam, with some turning around on Interstate 15. David Hunt posted the video, saying, “We were driving back from a wrestling tournament and got caught by fire. The other group that was with us had to abandon their vehicle and it burned to the ground. Here’s a video my son  took.”

Badger Fire prompts evacuations north of Yreka, California

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags , 2 Comments on Badger Fire prompts evacuations north of Yreka, California

(Originally published at 8:42 a.m. PDT July 19, 2020)

map Badger Fire Yreka California
Map showing heat detected by satellites on the Badger Fire in northern California at 3:48 a.m. PDT July 19, 2020.

Two wildfires that merged about three miles north of Yreka, California are prompting evacuations in some areas west of Highway 263. The Humbug and Badger Fires, near Badger Mountain Road and Hawkinsville Humbug Road, are now identified as the Badger Fire.

The last size estimate released by CAL FIRE Saturday evening was 350 acres, but growth during the night could have added hundreds more. As you can see on the map above it is about 50/50 on the Klamath National Forest and state protected land.

Badger Fire at 8:47 a.m. July 19, 2020
Badger Fire at 8:47 a.m. PDT July 19, 2020.

The Badger Fire was reported Saturday July 19 according to the CAL FIRE Siskiyou Unit, but the agency’s fire information page lists it as starting July 18, which may have been the start date of the Humbug Fire which was the first of the two reported.

Badger Fire Yreka California
Badger Fire July 19, 2020. CAL FIRE photo.
Badger Fire Yreka California
Badger Fire July 19, 2020. CAL FIRE photo.

Sheriff’s Deputy honored for saving lives during a wildfire in Utah

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags , 3 Comments on Sheriff’s Deputy honored for saving lives during a wildfire in Utah

Two people running from a fire were rescued by the Deputy

Knolls Fire rescue
The truck that ignited and started a new fire near the Knolls Fire in Utah County, Utah south of Provo June 28, 2020. Screenshot from video by Utah County Sheriff’s Office.

A Sheriff’s deputy was honored Wednesday for saving the lives of two people who were threatened by a fire that ignited when their truck got stuck near the Knolls Fire south of Provo, Utah.

On June 28, 2020 at about 9 p.m. Utah County Deputy Sheriff John Thomas saw the new fire and two people running from it. One was badly burned and was flown to a hospital after being rescued by Deputy Thomas.

It turns out that during an attempt to cut a fence to bypass a road closed by the Knolls Fire, their truck got stuck and leaked gas which ignited and started the fire south of Saratoga Springs on State Road 68.

Deputy Thomas saved their lives.

The video provides more details. Footage of the incident begins at about 1:20.

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Bill. Typos or errors, report them HERE.

And speaking of rescues on a wildfire, here is another one:

Incident Management Team ordered for the Neiber Fire south of Worland, WY

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags 9 Comments on Incident Management Team ordered for the Neiber Fire south of Worland, WY

(UPDATED at 12:57 p.m. MDT July 17, 2020)

Neiber Fire wind forecast map Worland Wyoming
Neiber Fire wind forecast, July 17, 2020.

Over the last two days the primary growth of the Neiber Fire  13 miles south-southeast of Worland, Wyoming has been to the southeast, pushed by winds out of the northwest. The map above shows the predicted wind direction for Friday.

Neiber Fire map Wyoming Worland
Neiber Fire map showing heat detected by satellites as late as 1 p.m. MDT July 16, 2020.

Thursday evening information from the Type 3 Incident Management Team indicated it had burned 17,545 acres of private and BLM managed land, an increase of almost 10,000 acres in two days.

The Neiber Fire is spreading through brush and short grass and is threatening facilities in the Murphy Dome Oil Field.

(Originally published at 7:10 p.m. MDT July 15, 2020)

map Neiber Fire Wyoming Worland
The map shows heat detected on the Neiber Fire by satellites at 2:06 p.m. MDT July 15, 2020.

In the 24 hours since the Neiber Fire was reported Tuesday afternoon, by 4 p.m. Wednesday it had grown to 7,800 acres according to the Bureau of Land Management. The fire is in Pistol Draw .

A Type 3 Incident Management Team has been ordered. The firefighters on the ground, including the Palouse hand crew from Idaho and the Black Hats from South Dakota, are being assisted by a DC-10 very large air tanker, large air tankers, single engine air tankers, and helicopters.

We will update this article as more information becomes available.

Neiber Fire Wyoming Worland
Neiber Fire. BLM photo.

Three large wildfires in southwest Utah

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories WildfireTags ,
wildfires in southwest Utah
Fires in southwest Utah. Data from fixed wing mapping flights around 8 p.m. MDT July 14, 2020.

Three large wildfires are burning in southwest Utah.

At least one home has burned in the 2,618-acre Veyo West Fire which is very close to Veyo, Utah and 18 miles northwest of St George, Utah.

BAe-146 drops on the Turkey Farm Road Fire
A BAe-146 air tanker drops on the Turkey Farm Road Fire. @UtahWildfire photo.

The Turkey Farm Road Fire was very active Tuesday and was mapped at 11,993 acres Tuesday night. A Type 2 Incident Management Team has been mobilized. The fire is 3 miles north of St George.

Law enforcement officials are asking for help in identifying the individuals who started the fire with fireworks.

Turkey Farm Road fire

The 4,000-acre Big Summit Fire started July 13 about 17 miles northeast of Panaca, Nevada and burned into Utah. It is 10 miles north of Modena, Utah and 61 miles northwest of St George, Utah. No structures have burned in either state.  Evacuations were in effect July 14.