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Additional evacuation warnings issued for Apple Fire

Bill GabbertAugust 7, 2020January 4, 2021WildfireApple Fire, California, T-9441 Comment

The fire has burned over 29,000 acres north of Beaumont, California

Updated August 7, 2020 | 12:43 p.m. PDT

Smoke over the Apple Fire as seen from Snow Peak, looking southeast at 12:28 p.m. PDT August 7, 2020.

The U.S. Forest Service said at about 11:30 a.m. Friday that the very large amount of smoke on the east side of the Apple Fire is the result of a burn out operation:

This is a planned event and has adequate aerial support and ground resources in the area. The smoke is a result of crews doing a burn out operation to remove fuels in front of the fire.

August 7, 2020 | 6:50 a.m. PDT

Map of the Apple Fire. The red line was the perimeter at 10:58 p.m. PDT August 6, 2020. The white line was the perimeter about 48 hours before.

More evacuation warnings were issued Thursday for the Apple Fire which has been burning since July 31 north of Beaumont and Banning in southern California. One of the areas on the list is the community of Morongo Valley. A warning is one level below an evacuation order.

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

“There is a potential threat to life and/or property,” the Sheriff’s Department said. “Those who require additional time to evacuate, and those with pets and livestock should leave now.”

apple fire photo — This photo of the Apple Fire was shot by Sandy Wood August 1, 2020. It is looking east from Mill Creek in Forest Falls up to Mill Creek Jumpoff, with Galena Peak burning to the right.

A mapping flight at 10:58 p.m. Thursday determined that the Apple Fire had burned 29,267 acres. The largest concentrations of heat at that time were on the east side as it burned into Willard Canyon and Bear Wallow Spring. Another area of intense heat was on the northwest side of the fire where it was spreading near Cedar Mountain.

Very Large Air Tankers, a DC-10 and a 747, at San Bernardino Air Tanker Base — Two Very Large Air Tankers, a DC-10 and a 747, at the San Bernardino Air Tanker Base 16 miles northwest of the Apple Fire. USFS photo.

From the Incident Management Team Thursday night:

“Firefighters made good progress in the Oak Glen area and were able to build direct line just below the fire. The fire is headed towards a rocky area. The smoke in this area was due to heavy fuels burning on the top of Yucaipa Ridge.

“The fire burned through heavy fuels in the Millard Canyon area, but stayed in place on the western slopes of Millard Canyon. Planes and helicopters built a line of fire retardant today in preparation for firing out a portion of the vegetation this evening. The goal is to build a containment line to prevent fire movement to the east to the communities of Morongo Valley and Pioneertown.

“The fire has stayed in place in the San Gorgonio Wilderness to the north. Firefighters have made good progress with mop-up and backhaul of trash and excess equipment in the origin area of Cherry Valley and Banning Canyon; this area will be in patrol status tomorrow.”

Stagecoach Fire continues to burn in Kern County, California

Bill GabbertAugust 5, 2020August 6, 2020Wildfire747, California, Kern County, Stagecoach Fire, T-74412 Comments

August 6, 2020 | 7:28 a.m. PDT

Map of the Stagecoach Fire showing heat detected by a satellite as late as 3:12 a.m. PDT August 6, 2020.

The Stagecoach Fire 21 miles east of Bakersfield was very active Wednesday, putting up a large column of smoke as it spread into more rugged terrain primarily to the east and southeast. The fire is 9 miles south of the town of Lake Isabella.

Wednesday at 7 p.m. fire officials with Kern County said it had burned 4,250 acres. Heat detected by satellites at 3:12 a.m. Thursday shows the fire could have grown by another 2,000 acres during the night (see map above). The unconfirmed satellite data indicates the Stagecoach Fire has moved into the Sequoia National Forest after burning on private property and land protected by the Bureau of Land Management.

Evacuations are in effect.

As of Wednesday morning the Stagecoach Fire south of Lake Isabella in Kern County California had burned 4,100 acres, a spokesperson for CAL FIRE said. During the afternoon the intensity increased, sending up a large smoke column.

At least two homes have been destroyed as the fire continues to spread to the east.

Not much information about the fire is being released by Kern County.

To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the Stagecoach Fire, including the most recent, click here.

Air Tanker 944, a 747, drops on the Stagecoach Fire August 4, 2020. Photo by @SoCalFirePhoto.

CAL FIRE Dozer 1743 on the Stagecoach Fire. CAL FIRE photo.

CAL FIRE introduces firefighting hand crews staffed by civilians

Bill GabbertAugust 5, 2020August 5, 2020UncategorizedCAL FIRE, California, inmate crew, inmates13 Comments

New CAL FIRE Firefighter 1 hand crews — New CAL FIRE Firefighter I hand crews. CAL FIRE photo.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, CAL FIRE, has introduced two hand crews staffed by civilians, rather than inmates. Based in the San Bernardino Unit, their primary mission will be fuels reduction and fighting wildfires in San Bernardino, Inyo, and Mono Counties.

Each Type 2 Initial Attack crew is staffed by 2 Fire Captains and 12 Firefighter I’s. The 4 Captains selected to lead the crews bring 107 years of wildland firefighting experience, with over 60 of those years spent on hand crews. Most of the firefighters have Type 3 engine time and about half bring hand crew experience.

This is a significant step for a state that has been relying on inmate hand crews for over half a century.

With the COVID-19 pandemic reducing the number of inmate firefighters, the CAL FIRE is scrambling to find enough personnel to handle the all important job of cutting fireline and mopping up wildfires.

COVID spreading through inmate crew camps and prisons 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 last month 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.

The Governor announced the state intends to hire an additional 858 seasonal and 172 permanent firefighters. The agency has also changed the mission of six California Conservation Camp (CCC) crews to exclusively perform fire related tasks, two in the south and four in the north.

Growth of the Apple Fire in southern California slows

Bill GabbertAugust 5, 2020August 5, 2020WildfireApple Fire, California2 Comments

But it is still spreading and has burned over 27,000 acres

Normally a wildfire that adds about a thousand acres a day would be very newsworthy, but now that the Apple Fire has burned over 27,000 acres, an additional 500 or 1,000 acres a day is only about a three percent increase. That is what this large fire north of Beaumont and Banning, California has been doing for the last several days. Much of the fire has reached the very steep rocky slopes of the highest peaks in Southern California and the Transverse Ranges at 7,000 to 10,000 feet where firefighting is even more difficult than it is on flat ground in California.

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

Wednesday the incident management team said the fire was mapped at 27,319 acres.

On Tuesday and Tuesday night the fire was active in some areas on the east and west flanks. Ground crews continued to build line in the area of Pine Bench and made good progress on the western perimeter east of Oak Glen. Line building continued Wednesday up to Yucaipa Ridge which is a high priority in order to protect the Forest Falls and Oak Glen communities.

CAL FIRE fighters Apple Fire — CAL FIRE fighters on the Apple Fire in the Oak Glen Area. CAL FIRE photo.

Stagecoach Fire burns thousands of acres south of Lake Isabella, CA

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2020August 5, 2020WildfireCalifornia, Kern County, Stagecoach Fire16 Comments

Evacuations are in effect

August 4, 2020 | updated at 9 p.m. PDT

Not much information is available about the Stagecoach Fire that was reported at 3:29 p.m. August 3 South of Havilah, California in Kern County off Stagecoach Drive and Old Ox Road. Tuesday morning Kern County Fire Department said it had burned 2,500 acres, and updated the size to 3,500 acres at 8 p.m. The fire is spreading primarily to the east and northeast.

The Stagecoach Fire is burning on private property and land protected by the Bureau of Land Management between two large parcels of the Sequoia National Forest. It is 12 miles south of Lake Isabella and 22 miles east of Bakersfield. (See the map below.)

To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the Stagecoach Fire, including the most recent, click here.

Soon after it started Kern County said structures were threatened.

At 8 p.m. PDT we checked FlightRadar24 and saw that at least two air tankers were working the fire, a DC-10 and a BAe-146.

Below is an excerpt from an article at ABC23 in Bakersfield:

…One of the first homes to burn in the fire was a total loss. On Monday, 23ABC spoke with the home’s owners as they evacuated the area. Still emotional after losing their property, they thought fire crews should have done more.

“They said the road’s too narrow. We’re not going down there. We’re not defending that,” the homeowner said. “So they’re up in all the neighbor’s houses and everything. And the fire is going everywhere else, but it’s going straight up in our house and that’s it.”

Resources assigned to the Stagecoach Fire include 21 fire engines, 3 water tenders, 3 helicopters, 7 hand crews, 3 dozers, and a variable number of air tankers (up to 4 at one point), for a total of 242 personnel.

Investigators say the Apple Fire was caused by a vehicle

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2020WildfireApple Fire, California, carbon particles, cigarette4 Comments

Hot carbon particles from the exhaust created multiple ignition points

Diesel carbon particles — File photo of diesel carbon particles (Photo from Guide to Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination)

Investigators have concluded the Apple Fire in southern California near Cherry Valley was caused by hot carbon particles from the exhaust system of a diesel-powered truck, which is not an uncommon cause of vegetation fires along roadways. Witnesses corroborated the investigators findings. At least three ignition points were found which all merged into one fire.

All internal combustion engines emit carbon particles which is why spark arrestors are required on chain saws, for example. The smallest are invisible, but particles from diesel engines can be much larger than those from small engines or gasoline engines. The bigger the engine, the larger the particles. As a qualified Cause and Origin Investigator I have picked up along railroads particles that were two inches long.

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

When a diesel engine begins ejecting carbon particles it can occur over a distance along a road or railroad. Multiple fire ignition points can be created.

Volatile hydrocarbons contained within the particle may extend the time the particle is thermally active. Larger particles may auto-ignite upon ejection and contact with the air.

A Diesel engine is more likely to throw out large carbon particles if it has been idling, it has suddenly been throttled up (such as pulling a heavy load up a hill), or if the engine is not running properly.

A discarded lit cigarette usually will not ignite dry grass unless the relative humidity is less than 22 to 25 percent, but carbon particles have been known to start fires at up to 80 percent. Many fires along roads blindly blamed on “someone tossing a cigarette” are more likely caused by hot carbon particles.

Pieces of catalytic converters can also be discharged from exhaust pipes. Normally catalytic converters can reach up to 1,380°F. When they malfunction and overheat they can break apart at temperatures of 2,400 to 2,800°F. Hot ceramic particles discharge from the exhaust system either through the tail pipe or through failures in the outer shell of the converter itself.

To learn more about investigating the cause of vegetation fires, spend some time with the 337-page “Guide to Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination” (NWCG publication, PMS 412).

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