Nearly 300 homes evacuated as Bear Fire in Northern California grows to 2,000 acres
The fast-moving Bear Fire burning in Sierra County swelled in size to 2,000 acres Tuesday after forcing mandatory evacuations and knocking out power to homes and businesses.
The fight now is for the community of Sierra Brooks near Loyalton. U.S. Forest Service and Cal Fire officials threw “significant” resources at the fire as it grew Monday, officials said, and crews are now focused on the community 40 miles north of Truckee.
The mission Tuesday was to “triage and defend structures in and around Sierra Brooks,” Tahoe National Forest officials said in an update just after 9 a.m. Crews will work through the day to keep the Bear Fire south of Sierra Brooks, east of Antelope Valley and west of Bald Mountain Range, officials said.
In the meantime, fire crews were still working Tuesday to reach certain areas of the blaze burning in steep, rocky terrain with limited road access, Tahoe National Forest officials said. But fire planners were encouraged overnight by cooler temperatures and calmer winds that allowed hand and bulldozer crews to dig fire lines ahead of Tuesday’s battle.
Sierra County Sheriff’s Office has placed 286 structures and 536 residents under mandatory evacuation orders. Sheriff’s officials said 760 residences and businesses are without power.
The blaze started 2 p.m. Monday 5 miles south of Loyalton on the east side of the Tahoe National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service said in social media posts. Loyalton is 100 miles northeast of Sacramento.
The Bear Fire had burned 1,381 acres and was 0% contained by Tuesday morning and grew incrementally. By 6 p.m., fire officials said the blaze had charred 2,000 acres. The cause is not yet known and was still under investigation.
Dry and windy conditions Monday fed the flames, said forest service officials, with fire spotting up to 1/4 mile ahead of the blaze. A red flag warning was in place through 8 p.m. as the fire leapt in size from 60 acres at 4:30 p.m. to an estimated 800 acres by 6 p.m. Monday, according to Cal Fire and the Forest Service.
The Sierra County Sheriff’s Office issued mandatory evacuations to homes in the area within evacuation zone SIE-E031. The zone is south of the city of Loyalton.
The Sierra County Sheriff’s Office ordered the community of Sierra Books remain under a mandatory evacuation. The following zones are under an evacuation warning: SIE-E022, SIE-E023, SIE-E027, SIE-E028, and SIE-E029. On Tuesday, orders were expanded to SIE zones E058 and E059.
This story was originally published September 2, 2024 at 4:34 PM.
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