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.
The fire is 4 miles east of the community of Shasta Lake
The red dots represent heat detected on the Mountain Fire by a satellite at 1:38 p.m. PDT August 22, 2019. Click to enlarge.
The Mountain Fire is causing evacuations in Northern California, northeast of Redding. The fire is 4 miles east of the community of Shasta Lake and is north of Highway 299. At 1:38 p.m. PDT most of the fire was between Bear Mountain Road and Dry Creek Road, an area with many structures.
It was reported at noon on Thursday and by 2:40 p.m. had burned approximately 600 acres. Later in the afternoon Air Attack estimated the size at 820 acres.
Pacific Gas and Electric shut off the power to about 1,200 customers.
By 5:50 p.m. PDT the radio traffic on the incident had slowed considerably, which often indicates the spread of the fire has slowed as well. It was first burning in timber and other heavy fuels but some portions moved into lighter vegetation that provided less resistance to control, and where aircraft could be more effective.
The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office has a lengthy list of areas under evacuation orders. The evacuation center is at Crosspointe Community Church, 2960 Hartnell Road, Redding CA. According to the Sheriff’s Office, 1,110 structures are threatened and 3,885 residents have been evacuated.
Mountain Fire, from Hwy 74, July 17, 2013. USFS Photo by Sam Wu.
The United States federal government has filed suit to recover the costs of the suppression and damage caused by the 2013 Mountain Fire that burned 27,500 acres. Most of the fire was in the San Bernardino National Forest in southern California. The lawsuit seeks nearly $25 million in damages from the owner of a Mountain Center residence and the property’s caretakers for alleged negligence that led to the fire.
The civil complaint alleges negligence and violations of California law as being the cause of the fire that started on July 15, 2013, and burned a large swath of the San Jacinto Mountains, for a time threatening the town of Idyllwild and forcing over 5,000 residents to evacuate. An investigation determined that the fire started when an electrical discharge inside of an improperly maintained electrical junction box “shot sparks and hot material out of the box and onto dry ground vegetation below,” according to the lawsuit.
Incident Management Team map of Mountain Fire, July 18, 2013 a few days before the spread was stopped.
The Mountain Fire started on property known as Gibraltar West that is owned by Tarek M. Al-Shawaf, who is the lead defendant in the lawsuit.
The defendants had a duty “to properly inspect and maintain their electrical equipment, electrical wires, and electrical junction boxes to ensure that they were safe, properly secured, and clear from dangerous conditions,” the complaint alleges.
“In addition to endangering countless lives, including those of firefighters who battle these large-scale blazes, the failure to properly manage the property and the electrical equipment on the property in this case cost taxpayers approximately $24 million dollars,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker.
The complaint specifically alleges that the Forest Service spent more than $15 million to fight the fire, that the fire caused more than $9 million in damages to natural resources, and that more than $300,000 had to be spent to perform emergency rehabilitation.
Our main article about the Mountain Fire in southern California has the details about the fire and is updated frequently, but here we have collected some video of the fire activity.
The first one is long, 39 minutes, but if you skip around you’ll find something that interests you. DC-10s can be seen dropping retardant at 10, 20, and 22 minutes. The video was shot on July 16 and 17 by “Lakeside Fire” at Garner Valley, Lake Hemet, Palm Springs, and the Hemet-Ryan Air Attack Base.
The next one, much shorter at 27 seconds, is a time lapse view of the fire on July 15, shot by Mike Sauder.
The next one is another time lapse and covers portions of four days, from noon on July 15 to about 8 a.m. on July 18. It is an animation of images taken every two minutes from a web camera on Toro Peak and was compiled by Hans-Werner Braun.
The next one, only 17 seconds long, was shot by the Riverside Press-Enterprise and shows the fire burning across a road on July 15.
Monsoonal storms brought heavy rain to the Mountain Fire west of Palm Springs early this morning. The weather station at the top of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway just north of the fire measured 1.61 inches between 11 p.m. Saturday and 8:53 a.m. today. The Keenwild weather station 5 miles southwest of the fire had 0.23″ since midnight. A flash flood watch was issued for the fire area as well as the Riverside County Mountains, San Diego County mountains and San Diego County deserts. There is a 55 to 80 percent chance of more rain through 10 p.m. with additional accumulations of up to 0.60 inch.
This morning the incident management team said firefighters are taking advantage of the break in the weather:
With diminished fire activity, firefighters made great progress with line construction particularly along the East side towards Palm Springs. Although conditions were hazardous and some crews were taken off the line due to the severe weather, firefighters continue to fight the fire aggressively where possible. Todays priority for fire operations is focused at the northernmost part of the fire with crews at the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway constructing direct hand line at the fires edge to reduce the threat to Idyllwild and surrounding communities.
The U.S. Forest Service has been using their new night flying helicopter and air attack ship on the fire, and proudly produced this graphic.
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(UPDATE at 7:25 a.m. PDT, July 20, 2013)
3-D Map of the north side of the Mountain fire, at 10 p.m., July 19, 2013, looking north. The pink line was the perimeter at 10 p.m. Friday, and the red line was 24 hours before that. (click to enlarge)
The Mountain Fire continued to spread to the north Friday, coming closer to the highest point in the area, Mt. San Jacinto, and within 0.7 mile of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. The 3-D map above which shows the north portion of the fire illustrates the very steep slopes the firefighters have as their work environment. The fire spread very slowly on the south side, while the east and west sides were relatively quiet Friday.
A major change in the weather is in the works, with the forecast for the higher elevations calling for much higher humidity and a 30 to 40 percent chance of showers over the next 48 hours. This should slow the fire’s spread and give firefighters a better opportunity to construct more direct fireline.
The incident management team has produced a map of the fire.
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(UPDATE at 9:23 a.m. PDT, July 19, 2013)
Mountain Fire, from Hwy 74, July 17, 2013 USFS Photo by Sam Wu
The variable wind direction Thursday caused the fire to spread, as expected, in multiple directions. It continued to progress in the Tahquitz meadows area, but firefighters on the ground assisted by aircraft, including two military MAFFS C-130 air tankers from the California Air National Guard, held the fire at a ridge. The fire remains active on the north side and continues to threaten the community of Idyllwild, according to the Incident Management Team.
The IMTeam produced a very readable map, below. It was released at 6 a.m. July 18 and contains the fire perimeter as it was known late in the day on July 17.
IMTeam map of Mountain Fire, July 18, 2013
We put together the following maps using data from various sources.
Map of Mountain fire. The white line is the perimeter at 9 p.m. PDT July 18. The red line is the perimeter 24 hours before that. The red squares represent heat detected by a satellite at 2 a.m. PDT July 19, indicating that the fire continued to spread to the north during the night. The apparent growth on the east side is most likely not new growth, but is probably a correction, showing movement of the fire several days earlier. (click to enlarge)3-D Map of the Mountain fire, looking toward the northwest. The white line is the perimeter at 9 p.m. PDT July 18. The red line is the perimeter 24 hours before that. The red squares represent heat detected by a satellite at 2 a.m. PDT July 19. (click to enlarge)
