McFarland Fire | |
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Date(s) |
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Location | Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Shasta County and Trinity County, California, United States |
Coordinates | 40°21′00″N123°02′02″W / 40.35°N 123.034°W |
Statistics [1] [2] [3] | |
Burned area | 122,653 acres (49,636 ha) |
Impacts | |
Non-fatal injuries | 6 |
Structures destroyed | 46 |
Ignition | |
Cause | Lightning strike |
Map | |
The McFarland Fire was a wildfire that burned in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest north of Wildwood in Trinity County, Shasta County, and Tehama County, California in the United States. Started by a lightning strike, the fire was first reported on July 29, 2021 on McFarland Ridge south of Highway 36. As of September 16, 2021, the fire had burned 122,653 acres (49,636 ha) and destroyed 46 structures.
The McFarland Fire was first reported as burning on McFarland Ridge, south of Highway 36 in Shasta-Trinity National Forest in Trinity County, California, around 6:45 PM on July 29, 2021. [1] Due to the fire's close proximity to Highway 36, fire crews began immediately building firelines to specifically protect the corridor. [4] Red Flag Warnings were put in place for the weekend with potential to aid the fire's growth. [5] On Sunday, July 30, Wildwood was placed under mandatory evacuation. An evacuation center was opened in Hayfork. [6]
Fueled by Red Flag winds, dry conditions, and timber, chaparral, and timber litter, the fire grew to 3,200 acres (1,295 ha) by the morning of August 1. [4] By the following morning, August 2, the fire was over 7,400 acres (2,995 ha). [7] High winds caused the fire to spot up to three miles away from the main fire. [8] However, fire crews had successfully contained five percent of the fire. The evacuation center in Hayfork was moved to a church in Weaverville. [9] By August 3, the south side of the fire crossed Hayfork Creek and was burning in both Trinity and Shasta Counties. [1] [10] On the east side, residents and commercial structures are threatened. [1] Crews worried that spot fires appear over Highway 36, however, the crews were able to hold the fire from crossing the highway. [1] [10] As a result of these concerns, evacuation warnings were put in place for Post Mountain, Trinity Pines, Shields Road, White Rock Road, and portions of Harrison Gulch. [1] [10]
By August 4, the fire continued to grow, fueled by dry vegetation. The southern part of the fire began burning towards the August Complex fire. [11] On August 5, the Platina area was placed under evacuation warning. [1] Smoke from the fire was carried into the Sacramento Valley and San Francisco Bay Area starting July 6. [12] Six handcrew members were injured while working a spot fire on August 6, sustaining burns. [3] On August 7, it was confirmed that the fire had destroyed four structures. The fire started spreading southeast, burning on the north slope of North Star Mountain. Heavy smoke from the fire caused air support to be suspended. [2] That same day, the Forest Service announced that portions of Shasta-Trinity National Forest would be closed through October. [13]
As of August 7, the fire had grown to 30,093 acres (12,178 ha) and was 21 percent contained. On August 16, strong west-northwest winds pushed the fire into Tehama County, adding an additional 40,000 acres over the course of the next two days. [14] The fire sustained slow, but steady growth until August 27, when it hit 93% containment. [15]
Minimal fire activity continued while crews worked to fully contain the fire. On September 16, the McFarland Fire was 100% contained.
Smoke from the McFarland Fire impacted the air quality in Hayfork, Yolla Bolla Middle Eel Wilderness, Sacramento Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. [12] In Platina, California, the smoke was so thick that the visibility was fifty feet. [16]
The impact of the fire resulted in the closure of portions of Shasta-Trinity National Forest for almost three months. [13]
The Helena Fire was a wildfire that burned in Trinity Alps Wilderness and west of the town of Weaverville, Trinity County, California in the United States. The fire had burned 21,846 acres (88 km2), and destroyed 72 homes. The fire merged with the nearby Fork Fire. The Helena Fire was fully extinguished on November 15, after reaching 21,846 acres (88 km2). The cause of the fire was a tree falling into a power line. The fire threatened the communities of Weaverville and Junction City and impacted recreational activities in the area.
The Ferguson Fire was a major wildfire in the Sierra National Forest, Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park in California in the United States. The fire was reported on July 13, 2018, burning 96,901 acres (392 km2), before it was 100% contained on August 19, 2018. Interior areas of the fire continued to smolder and burn until September 19, 2018, when InciWeb declared the fire to be inactive. The Ferguson Fire was caused by the superheated fragments of a faulty vehicle catalytic converter igniting vegetation. The fire, which burned mostly in inaccessible wildland areas of the national forest, impacted recreational activities in the area, including in Yosemite National Park, where Yosemite Valley and Wawona were closed. The Ferguson Fire caused at least $171.2 million in damages, with a suppression cost of $118.5 million and economic losses measuring $52.7 million. Two firefighters were killed and nineteen others were injured in the fire.
The Carr Fire was a large wildfire that burned in Shasta and Trinity Counties in California, United States. The fire burned 229,651 acres, before it was 100% contained late on August 30, 2018. The Carr Fire destroyed at least 1,604 structures while damaging 277 others, becoming at the time the sixth-most destructive fire in California history, as well as the thirteenth-largest wildfire recorded in modern California history. The Carr Fire cost over $1.659 billion in damages, including $1.5 billion in insured losses and more than $158.7 million in suppression costs. The fire destroyed multiple towns around Whiskeytown Lake. At its height, the fire engaged as many as 4,766 personnel from multiple agencies. The fire was reported on the afternoon of July 23, 2018, at the intersection of Highway 299 and Carr Powerhouse Road, in the Whiskeytown district of the Whiskeytown–Shasta–Trinity National Recreation Area. Coincidental to the name of the incident, the fire was started when a flat tire on a vehicle caused the wheel's rim to scrape against the asphalt, creating sparks that set off the fire.
The Walker Fire was a wildfire that burned near Genesee Valley in the Plumas National Forest approximately 11 miles east of the community of Taylorsville in Plumas County, California. The blaze was reported on Wednesday, September 4, 2019 and immediately expanded in size over its several days of burning. The fire actively threatened homes from Genesee Valley to Antelope Road.
The South Fire was a wildfire that burned on the southeast side of Tomhead Mountain in Shasta-Trinity National Forest in Tehama County, California in the United States. The fire was started by a lightning strike, making it one of 26 reported fires in the area due to thunderstorm. On October 17, the fire had burned 5,332 acres (2,158 ha) and was 75 percent contained. Select trails and roads in the fire area were closed.
The Lime Fire was a wildfire located west of Interstate 5 and north of Highway 96 in the Klamath National Forest's Lime Gulch area in Siskiyou County. The fire was started as the result of a lightning strike during a thunderstorm. As of September 17, the fire has burned 1,862 acres (754 ha) and is 96 percent contained. Evacuation warnings are in place for the area between Ash Creek and Gottsville, warning to take "extreme caution" along Highway 96. Portions of Klamath National Forest are closed due to the fire.
The Lake Fire was a wildfire that burned during the 2020 California wildfire season in the Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County in the state of California in the United States. The fire, which was first reported on August 12, 2020, burned 31,089 acres (12,581 ha) near Lake Hughes. It was fully contained on September 28. The cause of the fire remains unknown. The fire has damaged 3 structures, destroyed 12 structures and 21 outbuildings, and injured 4 firefighters.
The 2020 Loyalton Fire was a large wildfire in Lassen, Plumas and Sierra counties in California and Washoe County in Nevada. After it was ignited by lightning on August 14, 2020, the fire burned 47,029 acres (19,032 ha) in the Tahoe National Forest and the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest before it was fully contained on August 26. The Loyalton Fire was notable for generating three fire tornadoes on August 15, necessitating first-of-their-kind warnings by the National Weather Service.
The August Complex was a massive wildfire that burned in the Coast Range of Northern California, in Glenn, Lake, Mendocino, Tehama, Trinity, and Shasta Counties. The complex originated as 38 separate fires started by lightning strikes on August 16–17, 2020. Four of the largest fires, the Doe, Tatham, Glade, and Hull fires, had burned together by August 30. On September 9, the Doe Fire, the main fire of the August Complex, surpassed the 2018 Mendocino Complex to become both the single-largest wildfire and the largest fire complex in recorded California history. On September 10, the combined Doe Fire also merged with the Elkhorn Fire and the Hopkins Fire, growing substantially in size. By the time it was extinguished on November 12, the August Complex fire had burned a total of 1,032,648 acres (417,898 ha), or 1,614 square miles (4,180 km2), about 1% of California's 100 million acres of land, an area larger than the state of Rhode Island.
The 2020 Creek Fire was a very large wildfire in central California's Sierra National Forest, in Fresno and Madera counties. One of the most significant fires of California's record-setting 2020 wildfire season, it began on September 4, 2020, and burned 379,895 acres (153,738 ha) over several months until it was declared 100% contained on December 24, 2020. The Creek Fire is the fifth-largest wildfire in recorded California history and the second-largest single fire—i.e. not part of a larger wildfire complex—following the 2021 Dixie Fire.
The El Dorado Fire was a wildfire that burned 22,744 acres in San Bernardino and Riverside counties of California from September to November 2020. It was ignited on September 5 by a pyrotechnic device at a gender reveal party in El Dorado Ranch Park; it quickly spread to the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area of the San Bernardino National Forest. Burning over a 71-day period, the fire destroyed 20 structures and resulted in one firefighter fatality, for which the couple hosting the party were charged with involuntary manslaughter.
The Red Salmon Complex was a wildfire that burned 144,698 acres (58,557 ha) in Humboldt, Trinity, and Siskiyou County in Northern California during the 2020 California wildfire season. On July 27, lightning strikes in the Trinity Alps Wilderness started two fires, the Salmon Fire and the Red Fire, which eventually merged. As the fire grew, hazardous smoke levels surrounded Forks of Salmon, Orleans, Yreka, and Weed.
The Lava Fire was a wildfire that burned 26,409 acres (10,687 ha) along the slopes of Mount Shasta near Weed, California during the 2021 California wildfire season. The fire started on June 25, 2021 and was fully contained on September 3, 2021. The fire destroyed 23 buildings, including 14 houses, as well as damaged an additional building.
The Salt Fire was a wildfire that burned 12,660 acres (5,123 ha) in the Lakehead area north of Shasta Lake in Shasta County, California in the United States during the 2021 California wildfire season. The fire was first reported on Wednesday, June 30, 2021, and it was fully contained on July 19, 2021. The fire destroyed forty-one structures, including twenty-seven residences and fourteen outbuildings, and damaged four additional outbuildings. Although the cause remains under investigation, officials from the Shasta–Trinity National Forest believe that the fire was likely sparked by hot material that fell from a vehicle on Interstate 5 and landed in dry brush next to the freeway.
The Tamarack Fire was a wildfire that burned 68,637 acres (27,776 ha), primarily in the Mokelumne Wilderness in Alpine County, California, Douglas County, Nevada and Lyon County, Nevada, as part of the 2021 California wildfire season.
The Tennant Fire was a wildfire that burned in the Klamath National Forest in Siskiyou County, California, in the United States as part of the 2021 California wildfire season. The fire was first reported just east of Highway 97, three miles northwest of Bray, California on June 28, 2021. The fire was contained on July 12, 2021. The fire burned 10,580 acres (4,282 ha), destroyed five structures, and caused evacuations in Macdoel, California. The cause remains under investigation. The Tennant Fire was one of three fires burning at the same time in the Lake Shasta region, the others being the Lava Fire and the Salt Fire.
The Beckwourth Complex was a wildfire complex that burned in the Plumas National Forest in Plumas and Lassen counties. The two major fires of the complex, the Dotta Fire and the Sugar Fire, started on June 30 and July 2 northeast of Beckwourth, California. Started by lightning strikes, the two fires collectively burned 105,670 acres (42,763 ha). The complex resulted in the evacuation of numerous residential areas and the closure of portions of Plumas National Forest. In the community of Doyle, California, 33 homes were destroyed.
The Monument Fire was a wildfire west of Big Bar in Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Trinity County, California in the United States. The fire, which was started by a lightning strike, was first reported on July 30, 2021. The communities of Big Flat, Big Bar, Del Loma, and Cedar Flat are evacuated. Highway 299 is closed in the area. The fire has destroyed four structures, including three homes. As of the evening of October 27, the fire has burned 223,124 acres (90,295 ha) and is fully contained.
The Antelope Fire was a wildfire that burned in the Klamath National Forest, the Modoc National Forest, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, and in Lava Beds National Monument in Siskiyou County, California, in the United States. The fire was started by a lightning strike and was first reported on August 1, 2021. As of October 15, the fire had burned 145,632 acres (58,935 ha).
The River Complex 2021 was a wildfire complex burning in Klamath National Forest in Siskiyou County, California in the United States. The complex comprises over 20 wildfires that started as a result of lightning strikes during a series of thunderstorms in late July 2021. As of 25 October 2021, the fire had burned a total of 199,343 acres (80,671 ha) and became 100% contained. The largest fires in the complex were the Haypress–Summer Fire and the Cronan Fire.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Forest Service .