Single Publication

The Happy Camp Complex is comprised of 13 fires all burning on the Klamath National Forest over a large portion of Siskiyou County. The west side of the complex includes the Canyon, Three Creeks, Elliot, Ufish, and Malone Fires. Additionally, the incident management team assumed command of the Swillup Fire this morning at 6 a.m. The Canyon, Three Creeks, Elliot and Swillup are burning on the west side of Highway 96. Firefighters are focused on keeping the fires west of the highway, protecting structures and keeping the highway corridor open.

 The Ufish is burning east of Highway 96, southeast of Clear Creek. The fire is slowly backing toward the Highway 96 corridor. The Malone Fire is burning west of Elk Creek Road. Yesterday, active fire behavior was observed on the Malone Fire and several spot fires ignited outside the primary lines. Overnight, fireline was established around the spots tying them back into the Malone Fire. That fire has now burned down to Elk Creek.

The largest fire on the east side of the complex is the Head Fire. Last night rain fell over the fire area and, due to conditions on the line, firefighters shifted from working the line to structure protection work around the community of Hamburg.

Good progress is being made on the Den, Townsend, and Block Fires. The Block Fire is fully contained and partial containment has been achieved on the Townsend and Den Fires.

The Gold and Scott Fires were very active yesterday and firefighters worked hard to hold the fire on the ridge between Scott Bar Creek and Scott Bar Lookout and north to Anderson Peak. Precipitation over the two fires last night moderated fire behavior and provided an opportunity for crews to accomplish a significant amount of line construction. Crews are preparing structures in the area of Scott River as the fires back down slope to the river.

The Lake Fire is burning in the Marble Mountain Wilderness. An additional crew will hike into the area today to join the two crews already working the fire. Rain has moderated fire behavior. The assigned crews will remain in the area and be resupplied as needed by a U.S. Forest Service mule pack train.

Remnants of Hurricane Hilary are over the region and rain is expected over the east portion of the fire area this afternoon. The west side is not expected to receive rain but high humidity will help moderate fire behavior. Increased relative humidity and lack of solar heating due to cloud cover has already led to a decrease in fire behavior over the entire area. The rain will further suppress burning in lighter vegetation but heavier fuels will continue to smolder. Fire activity is not expected to pick up again for a few days. This will provide an opportunity for crews to aggressively build fireline directly on the edge of several of the fires in the Happy Camp Complex.

CURRENT ACRES BURNED:

Canyon (1,108), Three Creeks (320), Elliot (531), Swillup (500-600 acres estimated), Ufish (243), Malone (66), Head (6,419), Den (294), Townsend (81), Block (0.1), Gold (730), Scott (225), Lake (174)

EVACUATIONS:  View current Siskiyou County evacuation orders, warnings by visiting: community.zonehaven.com

An evacuation center has been established at the Kahtishraam Wellness Center, 1403 Kahtiishraam, Yreka, CA 95097. Call (530) 340-3539 if you have questions regarding the shelter.

ROAD CLOSURES: Highway 96 is closed from Seiad Creek Road to two miles east of Horse Creek.  Scott River Road is closed at Kelsey Creek Road. Fire and debris flow will continue to impact the Highway 96 corridor. Please check the Cal Trans website prior to travel in the area, quickmap.dot.ca.gov.  County road closures will be listed on the Siskiyou County Public Works website, https://www.co.siskiyou.ca.us/publicworks/page/closures-and-delays . If you are traveling and encounter mud or debris flow across the roadway do not attempt to cross over the flow. Vehicles can easily be swept off the roadway.

FOREST CLOSURE: Two closure orders have been implemented; Happy Camp Complex Emergency Fire Closure, No.05-05-23-06; Happy Camp Complex Emergency Fire Closure, No. 05-05-23-07. Please refer to https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/klamath/alerts-notices to view the orders and maps.

TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTION (TFR): A TFR has been established over the fire area. Flight restrictions include the use of drones. Operation of drones under the TFR is prohibited.

PACIFIC CREST TRAIL: The Pacific Crest Trail has been impacted by the Happy Camp Complex and a portion of the trail is within an Emergency Closure Order on the Klamath National Forest. The trail is closed between Etna Summit and Mount Ashland.

AIR QUALITY: For information smoke impacts and what you can do to protect yourself visit: https://www.airnow.gov/

For additional information regarding the Happy Camp Complex, please go to the InciWeb page at https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/