August Complex:

Per the Trinity County Sheriff's Office and the Trinity County Office of Emergency Services on 10/17/2020 at 1300 hours the following effective changes to the Evacuation Orders and Warnings will go into effect.

The community of Kettenpom will be downgraded from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning. This is the area north of the Kettenpom Store and east of the Zenia Lake Mountain Road.

Due to the fire activity an Evacuation Order will remain in place for the areas of Little Round Mountain, Bradburn Creek, and Double Gate Roads. This is due to the fire activity and fire traffic still in the area.

The Hettenshaw Valley South of the Ruth Zenia Road will now be downgraded from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning.

The east side of Ruth Lake, the community of Ruth and the communities south of Ruth to include Three Forks community are all downgraded from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning.

All other Evacuation Orders and Warnings remain in place.

Road Closure Changes:

A road closure will remain on the Ruth Zenia Road at the intersection of the Van Duzen Road to restrict southbound traffic down the Ruth Zenia Road. Another closure will remain in effect on the Ruth Zenia Road at the intersection with the Zenia Lake Mountain Road to restrict northbound traffic on the Ruth Zenia Road. This is due to the fire activity and amount of fire traffic in the area.

Safety Tips:

Once a wildfire has burned through an area, many dangers may still remain. There may still be smoke in the respective areas as firefighters continue their suppression operations.

When driving into the affected areas always be aware of potential hazards. Also be aware of emergency vehicles and personnel still in the areas.

Weather: No Red Flag Warning for today.  Over the fire area, sunny skies have allowed the temperature to climb into the upper 70s to upper 80s with some 90-degree readings at the lowest elevations. Relative humidity values are expected to be in the 15 to 20 percent range and the wind along the midslopes and ridges was from the north northwest at 5 to 10 mph with a potential for gusts up to 15 mph in some areas of the fire.   

Northwest Zone – Fire crews worked through the day defending control lines during the Red Flag fire weather event. High winds, low relative humidity, and unseasonably high temperatures contributed to increased fire behavior. Interior pockets of unburned fuel in the Bradburn Creek area continued to be consumed. Wind gusts and increased fire behavior also tested containment lines in the Coffee Pot area.  Overnight, firefighters patrolled containment features along the fire perimeter, paying close attention to the Kettenpom, Zenia, and Coffee Pot areas.   

Today, fire personnel will continue to patrol and improve containment lines. They will concentrate their suppression efforts along uncontrolled perimeter near Coffee Pot and Bradburn Creek.  Crews are removing hazard trees and clearing debris from roadways inside the fire area to make roads safe for travel. Firefighters are also working with Forest Service Resource Advisors to develop plans for suppression repair. The intent of suppression repair is to remove signs of suppression work, smoothing out hand and dozer lines, spreading plant materials over bare ground, and installing water bars to avoid soil erosion.   

PG&E continued working to repair electrical infrastructure. Helicopters are being used to replace damaged power poles and stretch electric lines to restore power to affected communities.  

Northeast Zone – Yesterday, firefighters focused on connecting fire line west of Bear Wallow Mountain, and on the east and south  sides of the 2017 Buck Fire footprint.  Increased containment was achieved in the Buck Fire area by using the existing mosaic of burn from the 2017 fire footprint to tie in fire line so fire is not allowed to move out of the area.  Night shift resources continue to work on hot spots along the perimeter of the fire in order to enhance containment.   For today in the northeast zone, north northwest winds will continue to push the fire back into the main fire footprint. Firefighters will continue to secure and fortify fire lines near Progeny, Bear Wallow Mountain, South Fork Trinity River, Rattlesnake Creek and Beegum Creek.  Cal Trans is working on replacement and repair of guardrail, and removal of hazardous trees along State Route 36.  

Evacuations and Closures – The Trinity County Sherriff reduced the Forest Glenn area from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning.  Additional modifications to evacuation status have been made - for current evacuation information, please refer to the links below. Evacuation information can be found on county websites referenced below or at inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6983/.  Hwy 36 remains closed from Southfork Summit Mountain east to the Hwy 3 intersection. Hunting and recreation are prohibited within the August Complex Fire Closure areas.  

Trinity County evacuation Information, contact: 530-276-8034 or https://www.facebook.com/TrinityCoOES/ .
 
Trinity County Private Property Damage Assessment Info., contact: 530-623-8223 or https://www.trinitycounty.org/recovery

Humboldt County evacuation Information, contact: 707-268-2500 or visit: HumboldtCoSheriff . Road Closures: For updated Road Closure information, visit Caltrans at https://roads.dot.ca.gov/.

Forest Closures are still in effect and can be found here:

• Shasta-Trinity National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/stnf/forestorders
• Mendocino National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/mendocino/alerts-notices
• Six Rivers National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/srnf/alerts-notices

Update: August Complex (South Zone)

Per the Trinity County Sheriff's Office and the Trinity County Office of Emergency Services on 10/16/2020 at 1300 hours the following effective changes to the Evacuation Orders and Warnings will go into effect.

The community of Forrest Glenn will be downgraded from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning. People who reside in the Forest Glenn area will be asked to access their property during the Highway 36 controlled traffic times.

The Hettenshaw Valley north of the Ruth Zenia Road and the west side of Ruth Lake will be downgraded from an Evacuation Order to an Evacuation Warning. The Hettenshaw Valley area south of the Ruth Zenia Road will remain on an Evacuation Order.
 

All other Evacuation Orders and Warnings remain in place.
 

Road Closure Changes:

The road closure on the Van Duzen Road will be lifted and the Van Duzen road open to traffic. A new road closure will be placed on the Ruth Zenia Road at the intersection of the Van Duzen Road to restrict southbound traffic down the Ruth Zenia Road. Another road closure will be placed on the Ruth Zenia Road at the intersection of the Lower West Side Road to restrict traffic into the community of Ruth. All roads on the south side of the Ruth Zenia Road through the Hettenshaw Valley will remain closed to traffic. The road closure on the Mad River Road will also be moved back to the location of the Journeys End allowing travel across the dam to the west side of Ruth Lake.

Safety Tips:

Once a wildfire has burned through an area, many dangers may still remain. There may still be smoke in the respective areas as firefighters continue their suppression operations.

When Driving into the affected areas always be aware of potential hazards. Also be aware of emergency vehicles and personnel still in the areas.

Weather: A Red Flag Weather Warning for the August Complex continues today with gusty NE winds to 25 mph, relative humidity in the low teens and very low overnight humidity recovery this morning.  Fire behavior will increase with predicted weather, causing interior unburned islands and aligned terrain to experience higher fire activity. Strong and gusty winds may cause dead standing trees to fall at higher rates, increasing hazards to firefighters.  The strongest winds will be through the morning and will start to taper down through the afternoon. They will be persistently out of the northeast. By late Friday into Saturday, we can expect better relative humidity recoveries and diminished winds heading into the weekend. Overnight humidity levels across the fire were very low. As a result, fuel moistures are now at critically low levels, especially in the lighter fuels; grasses and brush.  

Northwest Zone –  Yesterday, Red Flag weather conditions increased fire activity in the northwest zone, testing containment features. Humidity levels in the teens, temperatures 10 to 15° above average, and winds with gusts as high as 30-mph combined to increase fire behavior.  The fire spotted over the line above Kettenpom and near the West Fork of the Van Duzen River. Firefighters were pre-positioned, and aircraft were standing by - this facilitated a rapid response and allowed firefighters to contain the spot fires before they could become established.  The majority of fire activity occurred inside the fire area, as interior pockets of unburned fuels were consumed. 

Today, Increased fire activity is expected, with the potential for torching and long-range spotting where ladder fuels and unburned canopy fuels exist. High flame spread rates are expected within the fire perimeter where light fuels and timber litter align with winds.  Teams continue to evaluate suppression repair needs in the Ruth Lake corridor area. The intent of suppression repair is to return the area to as close as possible to its natural state and prevent future erosion and damage.  PG&E is actively repairing power infrastructure to ready the Ruth Lake area for repopulation. Approximately 130 power poles must be replaced before the system can be reactivated.

Northeast Zone – Yesterday, hotshot crews cut out brush in very steep terrain west of Bear Wallow Mountain to connect and further secure fire lines.  East of Irish Mountain, firefighters took advantage of favorable NE winds and completed a small firing operation to fortify fire line to prevent the fire from spreading further north. Helicopters supported this mission with water drops to cool hot spots near the fire edge.  Night shift resources held the fire in place, and further secured fire line adjacent to this area.  In Beegum Creek, strong winds caused firefighters to disengage their mop up operation due to numerous dead standing trees falling near the fire perimeter - helicopters were used in this area to add cooling water to flare-ups and keep interior heat from moving towards the fire edge. Hotshot crews continued mopping up hot spots on the southeast side of the 2017 Buck Fire perimeter.

For today in this northeast zone, NE winds will continue to push the fire back into the main fire footprint. Firefighters will secure and fortify fire lines near Progeny, Bear Wallow Mountain, South Fork Trinity River, Rattlesnake Creek and Beegum Creek. Guard rail repair and hazard tree removal on Hwy 36 continues near Forest Glen by Cal Trans crews.

Evacuations and Closures – Evacuation information can be found on county websites referenced below or at inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6983/.  Hwy 36 remains closed from Southfork Summit Mountain east to the Hwy 3 intersection. Hunting and recreation are prohibited within the August Complex Fire Closure areas.

Trinity County evacuation Information, contact: 530-276-8034 or https://www.facebook.com/TrinityCoOES/ .

Trinity County Private Property Damage Assessment Info., contact: 530-623-8223 or https://www.trinitycounty.org/recovery

Humboldt County evacuation Information, contact: 707-268-2500 or visit: HumboldtCoSheriff .

Road Closures: For updated Road Closure information, visit Caltrans at https://roads.dot.ca.gov/.

Forest Closures are still in effect and can be found here:

• Shasta-Trinity National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/stnf/forestorders

• Mendocino National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/mendocino/alerts-notices

• Six Rivers National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/srnf/alerts-notices

Update: August Complex (South Zone)

In the interest of the safety of firefighters and visitors to the national forests in the Pacific Southwest Region, fire restrictions are being kept in place to prevent further fires from being started and overtaxing the resources of those fighting existing wildfires.

The Regional Emergency Fire restrictions order is effective through October 30 and maintains the same level of restrictions that are in currently in effect.

Propane and gas stove use are permitted in developed recreation sites in National Forests in California. Developed recreation sites are defined as areas that have been improved or developed for recreation such as campgrounds and day use sites.

No fires, including camp stoves, are permitted while dispersed camping.

Weather: A Red Flag Weather Warning for the August Complex continues today, and the strongest winds are expected to occur over the fire this afternoon and evening. Gusty NE winds to 30 mph, relative humidity in the low teens and low overnight humidity recovery are expected.  Fire activity will increase with predicted weather. Strong and gusty winds will increase potential for dead trees to fall, resulting in additional hazards to firefighters.

Northeast Zone – Strong winds near Progeny resulted in active flanking fire and kept firefighters busy through the afternoon yesterday holding firelines and using helicopters to suppress fire with water drops. Brushing and chipping on contingency lines north of Progeny in South Fork Trinity is expected to be complete in the next few days.  In Beegum Creek, hand crews secured and mopped up perimeter line around the small spot fire at the eastern edge of the fire with assistance from helicopters. Hotshot crews continued hot spotting in the 2017 Buck Fire scar and evaluated firefighting equipment ready for backhaul.

Northeast winds today will push most fire activity back into the main fire area. Firefighters continue to engage and fortify firelines near Progeny, Bear Wallow Mountain, South Fork Trinity River and Beegum Creek. Helicopters will focus water drops in Progeny and Little Bear Wallow Creek west of Irish Mountain to keep fire from moving out of the drainage. Cal Trans will start Hwy 36 guard rail repair and hazard tree removal in the vicinity of Forest Glen today. This work will take numerous days.

Northwest Zone – This morning Great Basin Team 1 assumed command of a portion of the West and South zones, just south of Kettenpom. This part of the fire is fully contained, and Team 1 is evaluating the area for fire suppression repair needs. 

Yesterday hand crews and heavy equipment continued to improve containment lines along the fire’s edge in anticipation of today’s weather event. Near Ruth Lake and the Mad River Road, crews began removing hose lays and other structure protection measures along secured containment line.  

Today firefighters will focus on holding unsecure line near the Lassic Fire scar on the West Fork Van Duzen River and further south near Bradburn Creek and Little Round Mountain. Wind alignment within Bradburn Creek and islands of unburned fuel has the potential to become active. The potential for spotting in the West Fork of the Van Duzen River is of concern. Should fire spread along the south side of the river, alignment of wind and terrain could result in uphill runs and torching. As safety allows, crews will begin snagging operations on the 502 Road from Zenia northward towards Ruth Lake. 

PG&E will de-energize parts of their system today to reduce the possibility of additional ignitions due to line or equipment failures. The utility company has advised that Humboldt and Trinity Counties customers can expect to lose power today at 4 p.m. 

Evacuations and Closures – Evacuation information can be found on county websites referenced below or on inciweb https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/6983/57937/. Hwy 36 remains closed from Southfork Summit Mountain east to the Hwy 3 intersection. Hunting and recreation are prohibited within the August Complex Fire Closure areas. Safety hazards in the area include unstable trees that may fall, loose rocks and boulders, burning stumps; and deep ash pits.

Trinity County evacuation Information, contact: 530-276-8034 or https://www.facebook.com/TrinityCoOES/ .

Trinity County Private Property Damage Assessment Info., contact: 530-623-8223 or https://www.trinitycounty.org/recovery

Humboldt County evacuation Information, contact: 707-268-2500 or visit: HumboldtCoSheriff .

Road Closures: For updated Road Closure information, visit Caltrans at https://roads.dot.ca.gov/.

Forest Closures are still in effect and can be found here:

Update: August Complex (South Zone)

USDA Forest Service and CAL FIRE are engaged in a coordinated response to manage and suppress multiple fires that have burned together and are collectively known as the August Complex. The Complex is 1,029,110 acres and 77% contained. The Complex began August 16 and 17, 2020.

Due to the Complex’s size, four Incident Management Teams are managing the incident: The Great Basin Team 1 (Kuo) is in the Northwest Zone, Great Basin Team 2 (DeMasters) is in the Northeast Zone, SW Team 1 (Sinclair) is in the South Zone and CAL FIRE Team (Parkes) is in the West Zone.

An Area Command Team is overseeing and coordinating the multiple Incident Management Teams and providing support to R5 Forest Service, and the Mendocino, Six Rivers, and Shasta Trinity National Forests. Area Command Team 1 (Reinarz) is in place.

A recording of the joint public meeting on October 13 is available on https://www.facebook.com/MendocinoNF/. A Facebook account is not required to watch it.

Forest Closures remain in effect:

• Shasta-Trinity National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/stnf/forestorders

• Mendocino National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/mendocino/alerts-notices

• Six Rivers National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/srnf/alerts-notices

Northeast and Northwest Zones Evacuation and Closures:

On October 13, at 1 p.m. the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office updated their Evacuation Notices.  Refer to their facebook page or visit https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/6983/57937/. Hazards remain in areas with lifted evacuations, including smoke, debris, and fire vehicles and personnel working in the area. Hwy 36 remains closed from Southfork Summit Mountain east to the Hwy 3 intersection.

• Trinity County evacuation Information: 530-623-2611 or https://www.facebook.com/TrinityCoOES/ .

• Humboldt County evacuation information, please contact: 707-268-2500 or visit: humboldtsheriff.org .

• Road Closures: Visit Caltrans at https://roads.dot.ca.gov/.

Northeast Zone Update - Shasta-Trinity, Mendocino and Six Rivers National Forests:

Fire Information Line: (530) 628-0039
Zone Size: 270,336 acres | Zone Containment Percentage: 60%

Fire behavior was low yesterday with limited fire activity in Little Bear Wallow and Beegum Creek. Some interior islands of vegetation burned through the afternoon but only produced minimal smoke. Crews built containment line around a ¾ acre spot fire in the eastern edge of Beegum Creek and used heavy helicopters for water drops to suppress fire spread. Hotshot crews mopped up in the Pony Buck Mountain area in the 2017 Buck Fire scar. In Rattlesnake Creek, mop up work by U.S. Marine firefighters led to more fire line containment. Near Progeny and the South Fork Trinity River firefighters continued installing hose and pumps and used masticators along dozer lines to further secure the fire perimeter.

North and northeast winds today will push most fire activity back into the main fire area and new fire spread potential is low on the NE Zone. Firefighters continue to engage and fortify firelines near Bear Wallow Mountain, South Fork Trinity and Beegum Creek. Helicopters will focus water drops in Little Bear Wallow Creek west of Irish Mountain to keep fire from moving out of the drainage. Firefighters continue backhaul of equipment on the east end of the fire, approximately 10 miles south of Hwy 36.

Northwest Zone - Shasta-Trinity, Mendocino and Six Rivers National Forests:

Fire Information Line: (707)-867-0965

Zone Size: 69,957 acres | Zone Containment Percentage: 94%

Mop up and patrol is the name of the game on the Northwest Zone. Diligent efforts from firefighters continues to increase fireline containment. To prepare the fire area for phased re-opening, masticators continued clearing roadway debris and removing felled trees north of Ruth Lake along Mad River Road. Dozers steadily improved nearby secondary containment line.

West of Van Duzen Road,  crews implemented a direct suppression strategy near the Lassic Fire scar. South of Little Round Mountain near Kettenpom firefighters continued mopping up line at the recent burnout. Working closely with local resource advisors, firefighters began the important work of suppression repair. Repair work includes installing waterbars and pulling debris over contained fireline and repairing other damages caused by fire suppression. Aerial resources were not used yesterday. 

Operations will continue much the same today. Suppression actions may be taken on small portions of unburned islands south of Little Round Mountain early in the day. Crews will continue mastication on Mad River Road, constructing dozer line nearby, and building and improving direct fireline west of Van Duzen Road. Suppression repair work continues on contained portions of the fire.

South Zone Update - Mendocino National Forest:
Fire Information: 530-487-4602

Zone Size: 548,295 acres | Zone Containment Percentage: 86%

The Southwest Area Incident Management Team 1 continues to coordinate with CAL FIRE Team 5 on control measures in the Middle Fork of the Eel River area, northeast of Covelo. Firefighters are constructing dozer line and handline in this area of the Mendocino National Forest to help protect local communities.

As temperatures warm up over the next few days, smoke may be visible in areas where vegetation within the fire's perimeter continues to burn. Firefighters are patrolling the west and south side of the fire for heat. Firefighters are mopping up any areas of heat near the fire line to help ensure the fire perimeter remains secure. Firefighters are using remote sensing data that detects heat and periodic reconnaissance flights to monitor the east side of the South Zone.  Firefighters are using remote sensing data that detects heat and periodic reconnaissance flights to monitor the east side of the South Zone.

West Zone Update CAL FIRE Mendocino, Humboldt-Del North & Trinity Units:

Fire Information Line: (707) 355-4926

Zone Size: 140,522 acres | Zone Containment Percentage: 95%

Mop-up operations were successful today as firefighters continue mitigating any hazards, digging out any stump holes that might pose a heat source or threat, removing dead trees that are actively burning and strengthening containment lines. Smoldering islands and pockets of interior heat will continue to burn off until large fuels are consumed. Smoke may be visible throughout areas of the burn scar. Incident commanders remain diligent in evaluating opportunities to reduce evacuation orders and allow residents of the communities to return home.

West Zone, August Complex Update

CAL Fire Incident website