Mill Fire 3-D map, looking north at 7:34 p.m. PDT Sept. 3, 2022. The small orange areas represent intense heat.
Two wildfires in Northern California, the Mill and Mountain Fires, have burned a total of more than 10,000 acres in and near the town of Weed 56 air miles north of Redding. Both fires are being suppressed by CAL FIRE’s Incident Management Team 5.
Mill Fire
The fire is believed to have started near a lumber mill where it destroyed a commercial building and spread very rapidly through a portion of the town of Weed. It continued for another five miles to the north until it reached Lake Shastina.
Map of the north end of the Mill Fire, looking north at 7:34 p.m. PDT Sept. 3, 2022. The small orange areas represent intense heat.
Initially working with aerial imagery, officials determined that 132 structures had been affected. Damage assessment teams began ground truthing the information on Sunday. The initial early estimates from the Mayor of Weed and a CAL FIRE Unit Chief were that 100 homes were destroyed.
Evacuation orders and warnings are still in place but officials are repopulating areas where safely possible. A map is at Zonehaven.
Additional growth of the Mill Fire on Saturday was minimal. It was mapped Saturday evening at 4,254 acres.
Map of the Mountain and Mill Fires. The red dots represent heat detected by satellites at 4:21 a.m. PDT Sept. 4, 2022. The red lines were the perimeters at about 7:40 p.m. Sept. 3, 2022.
Mountain Fire
About 12 miles west of Weed the Mountain Fire had burned 6,451 acres when it was mapped Saturday evening, but it continued to spread into the night to the north and west. There have been no reports of destroyed structures and 685 remain threatened. Approximately 332 people have been evacuated.
The fire is very different from the Mill Fire. There are fewer structures close to where it is presently burning, it is in remote, rugged terrain, and there is little road access. Fire behavior in the last 48 hours has been described as extreme, with hazardous trees, snags, strong gusty winds, and high temperatures. The area ranges from 2,700′ to 6,000′ elevation. On September 2 a Fuels and Fire Behavior advisory was issued for Northern California due to extreme drought, extremely dry fuels, and extended periods of hot weather. It warned that fire behavior would be elevated for the near future.
Mountain Fire 3-D map looking north. The red dots represent heat detected by a satellite at 4:21 a.m. PDT Sept 4, 2022. The red line was the perimeter at about 7:40 p.m. Sept. 3, 2022.
There is no nearby significant recorded history of fire in the National Interagency Fire Center database. However that database is often lacking complete information. The fire has the potential for growth in all directions, including through numerous clear cuts with dry, light to medium flashy fuel.
Threatened communities include Gazelle and Scott Valley.
Multiple structures have been destroyed. A second fire, the Mountain Fire, is burning 12 miles west of Weed.
Updated at 8:30 p.m. PDT Sept. 3, 2022
Mill Fire
At 7 p.m. Saturday CAL FIRE reported that damage assessment imagery indicates 132 structures have been affected by the Mill Fire. This includes all structures of any kind including outbuildings that were damaged or destroyed. On Sunday damage assessment teams will begin ground truthing the data. The size has been updated to 4,254 acres and about 1,000 residents have been evacuated.
Mountain Fire
Also at 7 p.m. CAL FIRE said the Mountain Fire east of Weed, CA has burned 4,812 acres. There have been no reports of destroyed structures and 690 remain threatened. Approximately 332 people have been evacuated.
At 4 p.m. on Saturday CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 5 assumed command of both fires.
Updated 4:31 p.m. PDT Sept. 3, 2022
The Sacramento Bee is reporting that 100 homes have been destroyed in the Mill Fire, according to the Mayor and a CAL FIRE Unit Chief. Most of the homes were in the Lincoln Height area.
Scenes of the wreckage from the #MillFire burning in Siskiyou County. These are homes just off Highway 97, off Lincoln Ave. and on Wakefield Ave. in Weed
However, there is a NOAA Twin Otter aircraft flying an interesting square pattern over the fire at 14,500 feet. It may be collecting smoke or air quality data.
Updated 7:22 a.m. PDT Sept. 3, 2022
Map of the Mountain and Mill Fires 3:02 a.m. Sept. 3, 2022.
The 3,921-acre Mill Fire has destroyed multiple structures in the town of Weed, 56 air miles north of Redding California. Videos posted online showed residential areas burning as well as one industrial building. Thermal imagery recorded by the FIRIS mapping aircraft showed intense heat at the site of dozens of structures.
Map showing heat (white areas) detected by the FIRIS aircraft at the Mill Fire at 2:01 p.m. Sept. 2, 2022.
The spread of the Mill Fire slowed overnight as the winds that were gusting at more than 20 mph hour Friday afternoon decreased to 4 mph after midnight and the relative humidity rose to 54 percent.
The Mayor of Weed told the LA Times that the fire appeared to have started at a lumber mill near the town.
Suzi Brady, a CAL FIRE spokeswoman, said several people were injured. At least two were treated at hospitals, NPR reported.
Another fire in the area, the Mountain Fire, was very active through the night. It has spread about five miles north since it started near Gazelle Callahan Road 12 air miles west of Weed. It is about 6 miles southwest of Gazelle. CAL FIRE reports it has burned 1,464 acres, but current unofficial estimates put it more than double that figure.
Both fires are burning primarily on private land, but the Mountain Fire started near the boundary of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and burned some of the Forest east of Gazelle Callahan Road.
Map of the Mountain and Mill Fires by the FIRIS aircraft, ~5:49 a.m. Sept. 3, 2022.
The Mill Fire has light fuel loadings out ahead, and to the east is the burn scar of last year’s 26,000-acre Lava Fire.
The Mountain Fire on the other hand is surrounded by private timber land with no significant recorded history of fire in the National Interagency Fire Center database. However that database is often lacking complete information. It has the potential for growth in all directions, including through numerous clear cuts with dry, light to medium flashy fuel.
At about 8:10 p.m. the FIRIS aircraft mapped the Mill Fire at 3,921 acres, showing that it had burned from Weed, California north to the shore of Lake Shastina, a distance of nearly six miles.
The Mountain Fire 12 air miles west of Weed near Gazelle Callahan Road has burned approximately 700 acres. It is about 9 miles southwest of Gazelle.
Weather
Friday afternoon a weather station just southeast of Weed recorded 89 degrees, 7 percent relative humidity, and 12 mph winds gusting at 20 to 26 mph out of the east-southeast.
Friday night the winds should decrease to 5 to 10 mph out of the south after sunset, then decrease to 2 to 4 mph after midnight with a maximum RH of 45 percent.
The spot weather forecast for Saturday predicts 88 degrees, 12 percent RH, and winds out of the north at 1 to 3 mph.
The slower wind speeds should give firefighters a chance to put in some direct fireline on Saturday.
5:32 p.m. PDT Sept. 2, 2022
Map showing location of the Mill and Mountain Fires, near Weed, California Sept. 2, 2022.
A fire reported at about 12:58 p.m. PDT is threatening structures in the town of Weed which is northwest of Mt. Shasta, 56 air miles north of Redding California.
The blaze is moving rapidly to the north. The southernmost end of the fire is near US Route 97 east of Interstate 5.
Growth of the Mill Fire as tracked by FIRIS the afternoon of Sept. 2, 2022; time uncertain. The fire has grown substantially since this map was created.
Evacuations are in effect; the details and a map are at Zonehaven.
The last size released was 1,228 acres, but the blaze has grown substantially since then.
Mill Fire, looking north-northeast from the Hammond Ranch camera at 3:59 p.m. Sept. 2, 2022.
There are widespread power outages in the area which is affecting multiple nearby AlertWildfire cameras.
Mill Fire, looking southeast from the Antelope Yreka camera at 425 p.m. Sept. 2, 2022.
Mountain Fire
Another fire in the general area that started Friday afternoon is the Mountain Fire 12 air miles west of Weed near Gazelle Callahan Road. Both fires are creating very large smoke plumes and are spreading rapidly. The Mountain Fire was reported at 4:19 p.m. Shortly after 5 p.m. Air Attack estimated it had burned about 300 acres.
We will update this article as more information becomes available.
