Single Publication

People and Equipment:  430 personnel, crews, dozers, with 9 helicopters and 1 airplane 

Current Situation: 

The Basin Fire is 7,462 acres with 0% containment.  The fire started on Wednesday, June 26th and the cause is currently under investigation.  It is on the High Sierra Ranger District of the Sierra National Forest.  It is northeast of Pine Flat Lake, west of Spanish Mountain, south of Black Rock Rd (11S012) and north of the South Fork of Kings River. 

A response of over 400 professional firefighters are working on this fire with significant personnel and equipment ordered or enroute.  Both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters are assisting especially in areas that are unsafe or inaccessible to firefighters. California Critical Incident Management Team 11 has been delegated the authority to manage the fire and is coordinating the fire response efforts for Sierra National Forest.  The fire perimeter has been divided into 5 divisions for precision management of the firefighting efforts.

The main fuels are grass and brush.  The grass is dead and dried and very dense after 2 years of significant rainfall in the area.  This fuel type has been surprisingly resistant to control on this fire, as a result of its very thick and dense base. 

The fire is burning at 2000 – 4500 feet in elevation.  Temperatures at this elevation will increase a few degrees each day for the next few days to 90 degrees on Sunday.  Relative humidity minimums will remain at 15-18%, with a maximum overnight recovery to 45%.  Winds will remain calm with 6-9 mph upslope and gusts up to 12 mph.  An inversion layer has developed and is blanketing much of the fire area with smoke, limiting the use of aircraft, particularly fixed wing.  Next week, temperatures are expected to increase to triple digits, beginning on July 3rd.

Evacuations:

There is a mandatory evacuation order for the following Fresno County zones:  KK30, K29, K73 north and K75 south of Elwood.

There is an evacuation warning for these Fresno County zones: K72, K73 south, K75 north of Elwood, K 93 and K 134.. 

Please check the Fresno County Evacuation map: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=e7d6006a016a444db8b210ac4d2eb5cf

Closures: 

Road closure signs have been placed on the perimeter of the fire.  The public should review which roads are closed before traveling into the area because no one will be allowed to enter zones under evacuation warnings. To access websites showing both evacuation orders, road closures and many other emergency resources, visit: 

http://www.fresnocountyemergency.com

 A Forest Closure for the operation area of the Basin Fire will be issued in the coming days, and will very closely match the Fresno County evacuation zones listed above.