California Fire News

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

California Fire News

UPDATE: Goldledge Wildland Fire

Posted: 12 Jun 2007 12:37 AM CDT

InciWeb: Goldledge Wildland Fire:

Goldledge Wildland Fire

INCIDENT UPDATED 7 HOURS AGO

Summary

Firefighters are having a difficult time accessing the top end of the Goldledge fire due to steep rugged terrain on the fire. Crews hiked in from the bottom yesterday but were unsuccessful in reaching the hotspots. Today's plan is to continue utilizing the helicopter with water drops and have firefighters monitor the interior hotspots and be prepared to take suppression action if needed. The Goldledge fire still remains at 3900 acres with 65% containment.

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildland Fire
Benefits & Objectives	Keep the fire south of the McNally Fire. West of Kern Plateau. East of county road M99. North of the major ridge in sections 8,16 and 28 north of the south fork of Corral Creek.
Cause	Shooting
Date of Origin	06/03/2007 at 1130 hrs.
Location	10 miles north of Kernville
Incident Commander	Robert Sanders

Current Situation

Total Personnel	70
Size	3,900 acres
Percent Contained	65%
Estimated Containment Date	06/20/2007 at hrs.
Fuels Involved	Annual grass, low shrubs,chaparral and chamise at lower elevations. Fire burning into Jeffrey and lodgepole pine, mixed conifer forest.
Fire Behavior	Some hot spots near top of fire continued to smoke. No further movement. Fire progression continues to be limited by natural barriers.
Significant Events	Area closure remains in effect and will remain in effect until threat to cabins is abated.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Continued efforts on mop-up, hot spotting and cold trailing. Continue backhaul of trash.
Growth Potential	Low
Terrain Difficulty	Extreme
Containment Target	Expected containment 6/20/2007.
Remarks	One type 2 helicopter, two type 1 hotshot crews two type 3 engines and support overhead remain on the fire.

Weather

Current Wind Conditions	Not available
Current Temperature	70 degrees
Current Humidity	30 %
Forecasted Wind Conditions	2-7 mph NW
Forecasted Temperature	80-85 degrees
Forecasted Humidity	14-18 %

News: Firefighters Fully Contain Wildfire in Mono County

Posted: 11 Jun 2007 10:45 PM CDT

News: Firefighters Fully Contain Wildfire in Mono County:

"The Larson Fire is is now 100 percent contained and will be transferred to a Type 3 command organization at 6:00 am Monday morning, June 11th.

Resources will include essential overhead, three handcrews and 5 engines. Final acreage of the fire is reported at 1,080 acres.

The fire was sparked two Fridays ago and strong winds on Tuesday blew embers to new spots, igniting a new blaze along U.S. Highway 395 between Walker and Coleville, both in California. Firefighters credited more favorable conditions, lighter winds and some rain, in helping their efforts.

Calmer winds enabled air tankers and helicopters to attack the fire from the air. The wind had also pushed the fire in the opposite direction, causing it to burn into itself and preventing it from spreading.

A portion of U.S. 395 that had been closed was reopened Wednesday, and evacuated residents were allowed back into their homes. About 70 family members of the Marine Corps stationed north of Coleville were among those who returned home.

"Today was a piece of cake compared to yesterday. Yesterday, it was pretty scary. The smoke was real thick and black, and the wind was, what did they say, 75 to 80 miles an hour. I mean, it was coming fast," said Lenore Martin, resident."

News - Bodfish Wildfire Contained - News Story

Posted: 11 Jun 2007 10:49 PM CDT

News - Bodfish Wildfire Contained:

"BODFISH, Calif. -- The Bodfish wildfire is 100 percent contained. The fire broke out Sunday afternoon along Bodfish Canyon Road. A little more than 250 acres were burned, but no homes were destroyed. Approximately 100 firefighters battled the fire along with the heat and high winds.

So far this year's fire season has been very active with 6,800 acres burned in the Lake Isabella area. The Kern County Fire Department is reminding residents to clear away dry brush and debris away from their homes. Fire officials are crediting its defensible space program with helping save homes."

CA-KRN-Bodfish - Wildland fire

Posted: 11 Jun 2007 06:28 PM CDT

CA-KRN-Bodfish - Wildland fire: CA-KRN-Bodfish

Per 209 as of 1600hrs 200 acres, 20% contained. Unified with Kern county and BLM. Growth potential-Low. Expected containment 6-11 @1800

UPDATE: CA-KRN-Bodfish

Fire is contained around 200 acres.
Releasing most of the equipment tonight.

NEWS - Cal Fire Suspends Open Burning Permits Across State

Posted: 11 Jun 2007 05:26 PM CDT

Cal Fire Suspends Open Burning Permits Across State

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KCBS) -- Six Bay Area counties and five others across California are under new fire restrictions as a precaution due to unusually dry weather conditions.

In recent years Californians have been warned about potentially bad fire seasons that rarely materialize, but Cal Fire Spokesman Chris Morgan says this year is different.

"Southern California only had two and a half inches of rain and we're only 65 percent of normal," he said. "California is actually a Mediterranean type of climate, it's built to burn, but this year it has dried out much sooner."

State firefighters were called out five weeks ahead of the official start of fire season this year. Morgan said the suspension of burn permits will last until the start of the rainy season in November.