Park Fire has 13,000-acre growth in 24 hours as Northern California blaze spreads northeast
The Park Fire burned into its 14th day north of Chico and prompted new mandatory evacuation orders in Tehama County as the wildfire continued to spread overnight with low humidity.
The Park Fire, as of Tuesday morning, has burned a total of 414,042 acres (646 square miles), and containment of the wildfire remained 34%, according to Cal Fire. The fire has burned more than 361,000 acres in Tehama County and nearly 53,000 acres in Butte County. The wildfire has also affected areas in Plumas and Shasta counties.
As expected, drier and hotter weather on Monday increased fire activity on the northeast portion of the wildfire burning in Tehama County. Cal Fire Chief Erich Schawb, head of night operations on the Park Fire, said the blaze “did get up and make a run” on Monday into Tuesday morning, burning roughly 13,000 acres.
Cal Fire Incident Commander Billy See said the fire grew about 13,000 acres in 24 hours; 10,000 of those acres burned from about 5 p.m. Monday until about 5 a.m. Tuesday. He asked fire crews to focus on the dangers of wildland firefighting.
“Be cognizant about how this fire can move with the weather changes,” See told firefighters gathered for the Cal Fire Tuesday morning operational briefing. “We’re in for a tough three-day period. We’ve got relative humidity dropping down in the single-digits. We’ve got temperatures going into the triple-digits. We’ve got the canyon winds. It’s going to challenge you at every step.”
The overnight humidity recovery was very poor, and the wildfire is well-established in the Mill Creek and Antelope Creek drainages, according to Cal Fire’s Tuesday morning situation summary. Cal Fire expects the wildfire to continue to build heat and be resistant to control in those areas.
The Tehama County Sheriff’s Office issued new evacuation orders for zones TEH-718, TEH-722, TEH-724, according to Cal Fire. The Sheriff’s Office on Monday evening announced that deputies and allied agencies were notifying anyone who remained in the Mill Creek and Mineral areas of Tehama County to evacuate immediately; Highway 36 was open only for people who are leaving the area.
Cal Fire officials said critically low moisture in vegetation, steep canyons, long drive times and daily spot fires have created difficulties in suppressing the spread of the wildfire. They expected temperatures to continue to be hot and dry throughout Tuesday, with primary growth of the blaze in the northeast portion of the Park Fire.
“The fire is expected to continue to challenge crews until more favorable conditions arrive later in the week,” according to Cal Fire’s Tuesday morning situation summary.
The Park Fire remained the fourth-largest wildfire in California recorded history. The August Complex Fire that burned 1.032 million acres in seven Northern California counties is the largest in state history; it killed one person and destroyed 935 structures.
The Park Fire has been burning since it started in Butte County just east of Chico in a suspected act of arson.
Ronnie Dean Stout II, 42, of Chico is accused of pushing a a burning car into a gully in Upper Bidwell on July 24, igniting what would become the Park Fire before emerging from heavy vegetation along the hiking path and joining evacuees fleeing the area, prosecutors have said.
The Park Fire has destroyed 640 structures and damaged 52 others in Butte and Tehama counties, according to Cal Fire. The total includes infrastructure.
In Butte County, the fire destroyed 428 structures and damaged 47 others. Cal Fire said the fire destroyed 212 structures in Tehama County, damaging five others.
Over 6,500 firefighting personnel were battling the blaze on Tuesday. No fatalities or injuries have been reported.
The total acreage burned includes over 98,000 acres in Lassen National Forest. Cal Fire officials said active fire behavior is expected in Lassen National Forest due to dry weather conditions combined with low humidity recovery overnight. Crews and aircraft were working aggressively to slow and contain the flames with direct attack where it’s safe to do so.
This story was originally published August 6, 2024 at 11:13 AM.
