River Fire Archives - Wildfire Today

River Fire burns thousands of acres near Colfax, Calif.

Bill GabbertAugust 5, 2021August 5, 2021WildfireCalifornia, River Fire5 Comments

Evacuations are in effect

10:37 a.m. PDT August 5, 2021

River Fire map at 7:20 p.m. PDT Aug 4, 2021. The yellow areas represent intense heat when the fire was mapped.

Fire officials said in a briefing Wednesday evening that the River Fire west of Colfax, California had damaged or destroyed approximately 35 to 40 structures, but that number is preliminary and could change. Approximately 4,000 structures were threatened as of Wednesday evening.

The fire started at about 2 p.m. Wednesday and had spread for more than four miles when it was mapped at 7:20 p.m. that night. (see map above) Thursday morning CAL FIRE was calling it 2,400 acres.

The south end of the fire generally followed the Bear River drainage which comes out of Rollins Reservoir, then continued to the north-northeast as it spread to the Chicago Park area on Highway 174.

In an 8 p.m. briefing on Wednesday law enforcement officials said 2,400 people were under an evacuation order in Placer County. There were 4,200 under either evacuation orders or warnings in Nevada County.

The fire was pushed Wednesday afternoon by 5 to 8 mph winds gusting at 12 to 17 mph out of the south, southwest, and west while the humidity was in the teens and the temperature 95 degrees. The very dry fuels were receptive to burning embers that started numerous spot fires which burned together resulting in “area ignition”, as described in a briefing Wednesday evening.

Similar to Wednesday, on Thursday the Colfax area is surrounded by, but not officially within, a Red Flag Warning. The forecast for Thursday is for 85 degrees, 14 percent RH, and 8 to 10 mph southwest winds. On Friday it will be warmer (95 degrees) and drier with 9 mph winds out of the west.

Satellite photo, smoke from California fires at 7:01 p.m. PDT Aug 4, 2021.

Northern California wildfires visible from space

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2021August 4, 2021WildfireCalifornia, Dixie Fire, River Fire1 Comment

Satellite photo showing smoke from six large fires

5:55 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021

Satellite photo, fires in Northern California, 4:21 p.m. PDT Aug 4, 2021.

Wednesday afternoon the GOES 17 satellite could easily photograph smoke from six large wildfires in Northern California:

Monument Fire, on the Shasta-Trinity NF was 15,000 acres Wednesday morning, ½ mile west of Big Bar along Highway 299 and east of Cedar Flat. It is threatening Big Bar, Del Loma, Big Flat, and Burnt Ranch.
McFarland Fire on the Shasta-Trinity NF Wednesday morning was 20,005 acres. Evacuation orders are in place for the community of Wildwood.
River Complex on the Klamath NF consists of approximately 22 fires. Of these, 6 have been contained and are in patrol status. Of those that are active, most are ½ to 20 acres. The largest are Haypress at 5,500 acres, Cronan at 450 acres, and Summer at 2,500 acres, for a total of 8,487 acres.
Antelope Fire, approximately 2,400 acres, Klamath NF, was very active Wednesday afternoon with fire in the upper tree canopy. Spot fires have been observed 1/2 mile ahead of the main fire. Wednesday afternoon air resources could not assist firefighters on the ground due to poor visibility. It is moving north and impacting Tennant and Fish Camp.
Dixie Fire, on the Lassen NF, Plumas NF, and CAL FIRE. It was very active Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon and has burned approximately 274,139 acres, threatening several communities, including Chester and Greenville. It has crossed Highway 89 in multiple locations and Wednesday morning was close to crossing Highway 36.
River Fire near Colfax, California about 40 miles northeast of Sacramento.

River Fire prompts evacuations near Colfax, CA

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2021August 5, 2021WildfireCalifornia, River Fire3 Comments

About 40 miles northeast of Sacramento

7:29 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021

The map shows heat on the River Fire detected by a satellite at 2:30 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021.

CAL FIRE said that as of 7:25 p.m. Wednesday it had burned 1,400 acres.

6:16 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021

The River Fire in Placer and Nevada Counties 40 miles northeast of Sacramento was estimated at 1,000 acres at 5:45 Wednesday afternoon.

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

This is a dangerous fire and is spreading very rapidly to the north and northeast. Residents that feel uncomfortable should not wait for an evacuation order — officials may not have time to make all of the necessary notifications during this very dynamic event.

From the Placer County Sheriff’s Office (time uncertain, but it was found on the Sheriff’s Facebook page at 6:12 p.m. local time)

**Colfax area EVACUATION Order**
Fire crews are battling a fire near Colfax. There is an EVACUATION ORDER in place for the town of Colfax and the area starting at the Bear River Campground and extending on both sides of Milk Ranch Road to Tokyana Road; West of the railroad tracks to the river; From Mt Howell Rd north to Rollins lake. Gather your essentials and leave the area safely.
Residences that have been evacuated can go to the Auburn Veterans Memorial Hall at 100 East Street in Auburn.
** A secondary evacuation site is yet to be determined**

4:22 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021

River Fire, looking east-southeast from Wolf Mtn at 4:16 p.m. PDT Aug 4, 2021.

Updated at 4:07 p.m. PDT August 4, 2021

A fire that broke out Wednesday afternoon near Colfax, California is already prompting evacuations. The River Fire reported near the Bear River Campground is burning west of Interstate 80 on both sides of the Bear River in both Placer and Nevada Counties.

Colfax is on Interstate 80 about 40 air miles northeast of Sacramento.

At 3:40 p.m. CAL FIRE reported it had burned approximately 100 acres and is north of Applegate.

At least two helicopters, six air tankers, and one very large air tanker have been working the fire, reloading at Grass Valley and Sacramento McClellan.

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office ordered an evacuation for the area starting at the Bear River Campground and extending on both sides of Milk Ranch Road to Tokyana Road, Moorhaven Way, Placer Hills Road, Ben Taylor Road and Hillcrest Boulevard.

The fire is very close to but not within locations covered by a Red Flag Warning Wednesday and Thursday. At 3:50 p.m Wednesday the nearby PG377 weather station on Dog Ranch Road recorded 93 degrees, 17 percent RH, and 7 mph winds out of the southwest gusting to 16 mph. The forecast for Wednesday night is for the wind direction to shift to the southeast and the RH to increase to 35 percent. On Thursday it will be cooler, 85 degrees, with 15 percent RH and 6 to 10 mph winds out of the south and southwest.

River Fire burns thousands of acres west of Oakhurst, California

Bill GabbertJuly 13, 2021July 13, 2021WildfireCalifornia, River Fire9 Comments

Ten miles southeast of Mariposa

10 a.m. PDT July 13, 2021

CAL FIRE reported Tuesday morning that the River Fire 6 miles west of Oakhurst has burned 9,500 acres and destroyed 5 structures.

As of 7:30 a.m Monday, mandatory (leave now) evacuation orders were in effect for Road 800, Road 810, Road 812, Road 600, Apache Road to 612 both sides, Road 600 between Apache Ranch and Blazing Saddle Trail, and JWP Ranch Road.

Resources on the fire include 161 engines, 24 dozers, 24 water tenders, and 30 hand crews for a total of 1,327 personnel. CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 6 has assumed command of the fire.

The River Fire started July 11 and is 10 miles southeast of Mariposa and 28 miles north of Fresno.

On Monday firefighters were working on the fire while the temperature was 99 degrees at the Grub Gulch weather station, with southwest winds gusting at 10 to 17 mph. The forecast for Tuesday is for 101 degrees, 15 percent relative humidity, and 8 to 10 mph southwest and west winds. These are not extreme conditions, but very conducive to continued fire spread with very dry fuels. The forecast for Wednesday is about the same but a bit cooler — 97 degrees.

Over 15,000 personnel are battling California fires

Bill GabbertAugust 25, 2020August 26, 2020WildfireAugust Complex, California, California lightning fires, CZU August Lightning Complex, Dolan Fire, LNU Complex, River Fire, SCU Lightning Complex2 Comments

Cooler weather has slowed some fires, but the August Complex grew by over 16,000 acres Tuesday

Updated August 26, 2020 | 11:38 a.m. PDT

The growth of the big complexes of fires in California, LNU, CZU, and SCU, has slowed in recent days, but the LNU and SCU Lightning Complexes still gained 4,509 and 5,717 acres respectively in the last 24 hours. The August Complex southwest of Red Bluff increased by 16,097 acres.

(To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the lightning fires in California, including the most recent, click HERE.)

The blazes have charred more than 1.32 million acres, killed seven people, and destroyed nearly 2,000 structures. The fires are being fought by 280 hand crews, 2,400 fire engines, 300 dozers, and 370 water tenders for a total of 15,000 personnel.

In addition to the National Multi-Agency Coordinating Group working on a request for firefighting assistance from Australia and Canada, California activated the National Guard for help containing the blazes. On August 23 CAL FIRE issued equipment to 270 soldiers as they were beginning basic fire training at Camp Roberts. Another group of 300 soldiers will arrive next week for training. CAL FIRE will embed with each 20-person crew a Captain and two firefighters for supervision.

Below are updates on some of the largest incidents in California, with data from CAL FIRE and the U.S. Forest Service.

LNU Lightning Complex

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: North Bay
Counties: Napa, Lake, Yolo, Solano, Sonoma
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE Sonoma-Lake-Napa
Acres: 357,046. The largest fire in the complex is the Hennessey Fire, 299,763 . The Walbridge Fire west of Healdsburg is 54,923, and the Meyers Fire on the coast north of Jenner is 2,360.
Structures destroyed: 978
Personnel assigned: 2,207
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE LNU Twitter page
Notes: Fires that merged to become the Hennessey Fire include Gamble, Green, Spanish, 5-10, Morgan, and Markley Fires.

SCU Lightning Complex

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: South Bay
Counties: Santa Clara, Alameda, Stanislaus, Contra Costa, San Joaquin
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE Santa Clara
Acres: 365,772
Structures destroyed: 31
Personnel assigned: 1,655
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE SCU Twitter page
Notes: Fire activity has lessened due to favorable weather conditions and increased humidity across the complex. Deep seated heat still remains in the bottom of the steep, inaccessible drainages. During the evening fire crews held existing control line around the fire perimeter continuing to both reinforce and add new containment lines. When weather and conditions are favorable there will be a controlled burn operation inside the control line. This controlled burn will widen the buffer and consume fuel between the edge of the fire and the control line.

CZU August Lightning

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: South Bay
Counties: San Mateo, Santa Cruz
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE San Mateo-Santa Cruz
Acres: 79,640
Structures destroyed: 443
Personnel assigned: 1,697
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE CZU Twitter page
Notes: It is burning in Southern San Mateo County and Northern Santa Cruz County actively above the marine layer in the heavy timber and thick undergrowth. Approximately 77,000 people have been evacuated.

River and Carmel Fires

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: Five miles south of Salinas, near Pine Canyon Rd. and River Rd.
Counties: Monterey
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE San Benito-Monterey
Acres: 48,424
Structures destroyed: 30
Personnel assigned: 1,183
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE San Benito-Monterey Twitter page, and see maps produced by Monterey County here.
Notes: Firefighters patrolling the fire Tuesday confirmed that the fire remained within containment lines. The onshore winds from the northwest allowed the fire to travel very slowly to the south with in containment lines.The Carmel Fire 2 miles southwest of the River Fire has burned 6,901 acres and destroyed 37 structures.

Dolan Fire

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: on the coast 10 miles south of Big Sur
Counties: Monterey
Administrative Unit: U.S. Forest Service, Los Padres NF
Acres: 21,844
Structures destroyed: 0
Personnel assigned: 880
Evacuation information:
Notes: Fire behavior was moderate throughout Tuesday night. Crews performed structure defense in the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park and continued to protect private property and clear roadways around Partington and along Hwy. 1. Crews continued to secure direct and indirect lines to keep the fire out of Hermitage, Lucia and Morning Glory. Progress is slow due to rough terrain and lack of available crews. On Wednesday, crews will continue to focus on the northern and southern edges of the fire by constructing and enhancing control lines, with the priority being lines along McWay ridge and above Lucia northeast to Twin Peaks.

August Complex

Updated August 26, 2020 at 1:13 p.m. PDT
Location: 18 miles southwest of Red Bluff
Counties: Tehama, Glenn, Lake, Mendocino, Trinity
Administrative Unit: Mendocino National Forest and CAL FIRE
Acres: 197,148
Structures destroyed: 10
Personnel assigned: 476
Evacuation information:
Notes: As of Tuesday evening: firefighters are opening preexisting fire breaks as control lines on the south portion of the Doe fire (160,436 acres 31% contained). Structure protection is continuing when it is safe to do so. Line construction is continuing on the Glade Fire (18,307 acres 0% contained). Firefighters are working in coordination with Crane Mills Timber and using dozers to tie in the north portion of the Tatham fire (8,958 acres 11% contained). .

Predicted dry lightning could worsen the fire situation in California and other western states

Bill GabbertAugust 23, 2020September 21, 2020WildfireAugust Complex, California, California lightning fires, Carmel Fire, CZU August Lightning Complex, Dolan Fire, lightning, LNU Complex, River Fire, SCU Lightning Complex2 Comments

Red Flag Warning in effect for Northern California Sunday and Monday

August 24, 2020 | 7:45 a.m. PDT

Map fires California Bay Area — Map of fires in the California Bay Area, August 23, 2020.

As if firefighters and residents evacuating or battling lightning-caused wildfires in California didn’t already have enough to worry about, another round of dry lightning is in the forecast for Sunday and Monday.

Thunderstorms with little or no rain is what ignited over 500 fires earlier last week. Now scattered or isolated dry thunderstorms could hit northern California and portions of Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado through Monday.

Nick Nauslar, a Fire Meteorologist at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, wrote about the forecast in a tweet at 11:30 p.m. Saturday:

Hundreds of new fires are likely if this event pans out. And thunderstorm outflow winds will impact some ongoing fires which would lead to an increase of fire spread/behavior. I hope I'm wrong and this forecast busts. But for now, data points to another big event.

So it’s not just the potential for new fires that that is cause for concern — the strong outflow winds associated with the thunderstorms could greatly increase the rate of spread of the existing fires. It can also put firefighters in even greater danger as the winds can shift 180 degrees very quickly changing the direction a fire is moving, possibly overrunning personnel.

(To see all articles on Wildfire Today about the lightning fires in California, including the most recent, click HERE.)

Check out this video showing the effect the passage of a thunderstorm had on the just-ignited Hennessey Fire August 17 in Napa Valley. That fire has now burned 287,811 acres. The effect of outflow winds is temporary, but a blaze that is suddenly much larger can outstrip the ability of firefighters to quickly suppress it.

Red Flag Warnings are in effect for the northern half of California through Monday evening. The highest threat of dry lightning is Sunday afternoon through Monday morning.

With existing shortages of personnel, equipment, engines, and firefighting aircraft, more fires would put further strain on the systems that are already being managed at the highest planning level nationally, Preparedness Level 5. In PL 5 over 80% of the nation’s incident management teams and wildland firefighting personnel are committed to incidents. Resource orders are being prioritized to fires across California and the west.

Aircraft that can map a fire using infrared imagery have not yet flown all of the large incidents and some maps and acreages are estimates. One of the two mapping aircraft owned by the U.S. Forest Service, N144Z which is the most capable, has not successfully mapped a fire since November 16, 2018 because an avionics issue has not been repaired. The Forest Service has hired privately owned mapping aircraft in an attempt to fill the void.

Below are updates on the largest incidents in California.

LNU Lightning Complex

Updated August 24, 2020 at 7:38 p.m. PDT
Location: North Bay
Counties: Napa, Lake, Yolo, Solano, Sonoma
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE Sonoma-Lake-Napa
Acres: 350,030. The largest fire in the complex is the Hennessey Fire, 293,602. The Walbridge Fire west of Healdsburg is 54,068, and the Meyers Fire on the coast north of Jenner is 2,360.
Structures destroyed: 871
Personnel assigned: 1,857
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE LNU Twitter page
Notes: Fires that merged to become the Hennessey Fire include Gamble, Green, Spanish, 5-10, Morgan, and Markley Fires.

SCU Lightning Complex

Updated August 24, 2020 at 7:44 a.m. PDT
Location: South Bay
Counties: Santa Clara, Alameda, Stanislaus, Contra Costa, San Joaquin
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE Santa Clara
Acres: 347,196
Structures destroyed: 12
Personnel assigned: 1,336
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE SCU Twitter page
Notes: The complex is comprised of approximately 20 separate fires broken into three zones; the Canyon Zone, the Calaveras Zone, and the Deer Zone.

CZU August Lightning

Updated August 24, 2020 at 7:44 a.m. PDT
Location: South Bay
Counties: San Mateo, Santa Cruz
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE San Mateo-Santa Cruz
Acres: 74,000
Structures destroyed: 163
Personnel assigned: 1,511
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE CZU Twitter page
Notes: The fires continue to actively burn above the marine layer in the heavy timber and thick undergrowth. Damage Inspection Teams have begun to survey areas where fire activity has diminished and it is safe to do so. The number of destroyed structures reflected may change as teams continue to make progress. Firefighting resources are limited due to the number of fires burning throughout California. Limited visibility due to smoke is hampering aircraft operations. Approximately 77,000 people have been evacuated.

River and Carmel Fires

Updated August 24, 2020 at 7:44 a.m. PDT
Location: Five miles south of Salinas, near Pine Canyon Rd. and River Rd.
Counties: Monterey
Administrative Unit: CAL FIRE San Benito-Monterey
Acres: 48,424
Structures destroyed: 21
Personnel assigned: 1,274
Evacuation information: CAL FIRE San Benito-Monterey Twitter page, and see maps produced by Monterey County here.
Notes: The Carmel Fire 2 miles southwest of the River Fire has burned 6,695 acres and destroyed 37 structures.

Dolan Fire

Updated August 23, 2020 at 9:31 a.m. PDT
Location: on the coast 10 miles south of Big Sur
Counties: Monterey
Administrative Unit: U.S. Forest Service, Los Padres NF
Acres: 19,287
Structures destroyed: 0
Personnel assigned: 488
Evacuation information:
Notes: On private land and the Los Padres National Forest, threatening the communities of Hermitage, Partington Ridge, and Lucia. Multiple businesses, communications sites, parks and recreational sites are also threatened. On Saturday crews continued to focus on point protection operations around Hermitage and Lucia to the South, and Partington Ridge and Anderson Peak communications infrastructure to the North. As the threat diminishes these priorities will shift. After more resources arrive the plan will expand to include additional perimeter control operations. The fire was mapped for the first time Saturday night with a fixed wing aircraft. This accurate method is the reason for the large increase in the known acreage.

August Complex

Updated August 24, 2020 at 7:44 a.m. PDT
Location: 18 miles southwest of Red Bluff
Counties: Tehama, Glenn, Lake, Mendocino, Trinity
Administrative Unit: Mendocino National Forest and CAL FIRE
Acres: 177,750
Structures destroyed: 10
Personnel assigned: 433
Evacuation information:
Notes: Of the 20 fires in the Complex the two largest are the Doe (136,430 acres) and Glade (13,088 acres). A Structure Damage Assessment Team has been ordered. Limited information is available about this incident.

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