More Fire Images (Updated)

I'm still watching the news about the fires still burning around the state, especially the huge fire in Southern California, the one named "Station Fire". One of the things I'm watching is it's approach to Mount Wilson and the century old observatory there. Mount Wilson also hosts the communication towers for most of the radio and television stations in the Los Angeles basin. I can remember visiting the observatory up on that peak years ago. It has always amazed me that an observatory so near to the smoggy LA basin could get clear views of space. I've felt the same about the Griffith Observatory... Anyway, a really good way to keep track of what is happening up on Mount Wilson is to check in with the web cam that sits on top of the Solar Tower.

Here's some screen captures from last night and this morning:

This one was taken a little while after sunset. I wish I had thought to capture one the sunset views. Maybe I'll try tonight.

This one was just before I went to bed last night...

And this one is from this morning... So far so good. The fire is close, and unfortunately it's getting closer. I just hope that the observatory survives. It's a piece of history and it's an important facility for the scientists who watch the skies.

Another image I want to share is one that I "borrowed" from twitter. A fellow posted a link to it and said that it was an image that had been uploaded to a local media site. I don't know which site, nor do I know who took it, but it's such a striking photo... When I first saw the image I almost thought it was a CGI (Computer Generated Image) or a painting... What do you think? CGI? Painting? Nope.. It's an honest to goodness photo... Kudos to the photographer, whoever you might be...

~~~

Just a little note here, I haven't stopped watching the news about crimes. Still watching things locally and still watching the national news. I've been keeping up on the Anthony's and what they're all up to, and I still have an alert in google for anything that Phil Spector and his wife do. And lately, I've been watching the news about Jaycee Dugard and her kidnappers, Phillip and Nancy Garrido. I don't know when I'll post about them, but I'm sure I will eventually.

Update:

Just a quick update about the link to the Mount Wilson Observatory web cam that's in the post above; Unfortunately the web server is down now. All the smoke that had been building up close to the web cam on the Solar Tower was from backfires set by firefighters trying to protect the main structures and communication towers. So far, so good. They are burning off the undergrowth and dead pine needles on the ground and keeping the flames out of the trees themselves.

Here are the last three entries from the blog (which is temporarily being hosted elsewhere), the second entry explains why the web cam is down:

1 Sep 09, 2:04 pm PDT - CHARA Site Manager Larry Webster, who left the mountain yesterday morning, has told me that what we see on the TV feeds is exactly what the fire fighters told him they would do to deplete flammables on the ground. Their plan, which they would have implemented earlier had they not been withdrawn, was to start these groundlevel fire and literally walk along with them to keep them controlled. This is why we see no flames. The fires will consume the accumulation of needles from the many pine and fir trees as well as other scrub growth that could flame up and ignite lower limbs that would them permit the blossoming of the entire tree into flames. All the smoke we see is entirely consistent with this procedure. Larry and Dave are both delighted to see what's going on, but I've got to say that seeing smoke next to those domes is very unsettling to me. Still, I know what the fire fighters are now doing is necessary to save the Observatory.

1 Sep 09, 2:15 pm PDT - The Mount Wilson webserver went down moments ago, most likely due to a backfire infiltration of a pull box containing telephone lines that bring us our T1 internet service. All future updates will be posted here.

- The Battalion fire chief on Mount Wilson has just called both Larry and Dave to ask how to turn off the fire alarm up there! His name is Cam Todd and he's a Cal Fire chief with crews from Calaveras County. These are the same fire crews who did such a fantastic job prepping the place over the weekend before they were withdrawn yesterday morning. Chief Todd confirmed that these are indeed backfires and he said his guys are doing a heck of a job and their efforts are going just great!

Incredible Fire Photo

Just had to share this photo of odd fire behavior.. Or maybe not so odd. Fire can create it's own wind and weather patterns... The speed limit sign says 25mph.. How fast do you think the fire is "moving"?

Photo source: LA Times

Traveling Again... Fires... And Losses...

Yesterday, I spent the day with my parents out in the car for a day trip. This time my Step-dad decided on going up to Nevada City for breakfast and then on up the hill to Truckee for window shopping and lunch. When we arrived in Grass Valley on Highway 20, we heard sirens and then saw an ambulance and a fire truck racing up behind us, then we saw off to one side of the road a large column of smoke rising up through the trees. We couldn't see what was burning, and with my folks in the car, I wasn't about to go chasing the smoke with my camera to get photos. Also, we weren't able to get over to the side in traffic so that could step out of the car to get a photo of the column of smoke. So, once the emergency vehicles were clear of us, I took the turn onto Highway 49 so that we could get up to Nevada City.

*Skipping forward in time, when we got back to Yuba City and my parents home, I got on their computer to look up some information and found that the smoke was saw in Grass Valley was a fully involved apartment building. Two people were injured and about 13 were left homeless. (Source of photo and information: The Union) One of the injured was a woman who was apparently in the apartment where the fire started. She suffered burns and injuries from exploding oxygen tanks. I haven't been able to find information on how she is this morning. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

After breakfast in Nevada City, we traveled on up to Truckee and spent a few hours wandering around the town, window shopping and enjoying the cooler weather. There are a lot of very interesting little shops and lots of friendly shopkeepers. After wandering through the shops and having a little lunch (No comment on the lunch nor the restaurant we ate at beyond the fact that I doubt if we'll be going back there.. lol), we headed back down I80 towards home. I'd say about half-way down from the summit, I saw flashing lights in the rear view mirror, and it wasn't a cop. It was a fire vehicle (Not a fire engine, it was a supervisor vehicle. An SUV type.) and he literally flew past us and we lost sight of him rather quickly. A couple miles after we lost sight of him, we saw off in the distance between the trees a very large column of smoke billowing up. It was nearly impossible to tell at that point where the fire was because the road twists and turns so much. We got a few more glimpses of the growing column of smoke as we traveled down the highway. And we saw a lot more fire vehicles, engines, crew trucks and supervisors. As we got near Applegate, the color of the smoke suddenly turned from the brown/tan color of a brush or wildland fire to thick black smoke. We knew then that there were structures involved. And from the amount of smoke, we thought there a lot of buildings involved.

After we got off I80, we drove down near the town of Lincoln so we could get a clear view of the smoke and stopped so that I could get out of the car to take a couple photos. In the photo to the left, you can see the thick, dark color of the smoke. At this point we were less than 10 miles (as the crow flies) from the fire. In the next photo, you can see a wide shot of how the smoke was "laying down" and being blown to the north. Even during the few moments we were stopped alongside the road while I took those few photos, we saw another fire truck go by with lights and sirens.

*Skipping forward in time again to us looking up the fire information on the computer at my folk's house, we found out that the smoke we'd been watching on our way down from Donner Pass was the "49er Fire" in the northern part of the city of Auburn. And the black smoke we saw was coming from 50 to 60 structures that were being destroyed. Businesses and residences both. I haven't seen a full official count of structures lost yet. There are still a lot of trucks and firefighters out on the fire this morning, and the last I saw, the fire is still just 60% contained.

The rest of the drive home was uneventful, thank goodness. We unloaded our goodies from Truckee and sorted things out and watched some of the news coverage of the fire in Auburn. I headed for home then, but on the way, I decided to stop and take one more photo looking back towards Auburn and that column of smoke. I picked a spot where the highway climbs up a levee on the Sutter Bypass and pulled off to the side of the road. At this point, all you can see of that black column of smoke we saw earlier is a smudge against the horizon because of the haze in the valley.

The latest information from the CalFire website says that the 49er fire has burned 275 acres (Down from the 500 acres the news stations were reporting yesterday due to more accurate mapping of the fire today.) The CalFire website is also reporting that 60 structures were either damaged or destroyed.

More information, videos and photos from the 49er fire in Auburn can be found in these links:
KCRA3
News10.net
CBS13/CW31
Fox40 News

In other fire news, the Station fire near Los Angeles doubled in size overnight to 85,750 acres burned. And it took the lives of two Los Angeles County Fire Department firefighters yesterday.

The official release about the deaths of the firefighters is here:

Firefighter Line of Duty Deaths

It is with our deepest regret to inform you the media of the Line Of Duty Deaths for Fire Captain Tedmund "Ted" Hall and Firefighter Specialist Arnaldo "Arnie" Quinones. These two members tragically lost their lives when the where overran by a fast moving fire which approached Fire Camp 16 on the "Station Fire" Incident.

Fire Captain Tedmund "Ted" Hall was 47 years of age and was a member of the Los Angeles County Fire Department for 26 years and lived in San Bernardino County, California. Firefighter Specialist Arnaldo "Arnie" Quinones was 35 years of Age, and was a member of the Los Angeles County Fire department for 8 years and lived in Palmdale, California.

Funeral arrangements are pending and information relating to services will be made available in the near future.

For additional information, please contact Captain Mike Brown, Public Information Officer at (323) 881-2413.

I've said many times that firefighters are heroes. We have two more fallen heroes now. Please say a little prayer or have a good thought or two for these two heroes as well as for their families, friends and co-workers.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement after two Los Angeles County firefighters died while fighting the Station fire:

“Our hearts are heavy as we are tragically reminded of the sacrifices our firefighters and their families make daily to keep us safe. This is a devastating day for firefighters everywhere and Maria and I join all Californians in expressing our gratitude and sadness. Our hearts go out to their loved ones.”

The other blog that I post on has information as well: California Fire News

~~

So many firefighters out there on all of the fires that are threatening people, homes and wildlands. Please take a few minutes today and think of the thousands of men and women who choose to protect you and yours.

Truckers Can Be Heroes Too

I know lots of folks look at trucks on the highway as just an obstacle in their way. They are wrong, though... If it weren't for trucks and the people who drive them, there wouldn't be much of anything to call your own.... Because if you have something, more than likely it got to you in the back of a truck.

Anyway, in the news here the last couple of days there has been a story of a trucker that a lot of folks are calling a hero. There is a truckstop near the town of Ripon, California and on Thursday night, one of the trucks in the lot caught on fire. Well, not the whole truck, just the trailer. The trucker didn't just jump out of his truck and run away. He put the truck in gear and drove it out of the parking lot and down a nearby street to an area where it was isolated and the fire was unable to spread.

The Ripon Police Department was dispatched along with the fire department. The first patrol car on the scene had his dash-cam going when he arrived and the video has been on the news this morning. I "grabbed" it and put it on YouTube this morning so I could share it here:

The Modesto Bee has a number of still photos of the aftermath of the truck fire. What a mess, huh? From the angles of the photos, it looks as though only the trailer burned, not the tractor. Lucky for the driver, I would imagine, because that means that all his belongings in the truck are still there.

I also posted the Modesto Bee article on the California Fire News blog this morning.

In my opinion, that trucker is a hero. By staying with his truck and driving it out of the truckstop he prevented a disaster. At night, truckstop parking areas are usually full of trucks parked close together. If that trucker hadn't moved, who knows how many trucks would have burned and who knows what kind of loads would have been destroyed. The hero's name is Randal Jack, and I salute him for keeping his head when he looked out his mirrors and saw the flames.

Gremlins, Anyone?

more cat pictures

Well, first of all, I will apologize to those who come and read my blog regularly that have found nothing new for the past few days. I'm sorry for not posting anything! lol.. No excuses, though, I don't have any. First of all, the news about my Mom is all good. Everything is going fine with the new pacemaker and her healing from the surgery to replace the old one. I spent the last couple of days helping my trucker friend spend money.. lol... He's getting ready for his vacation and he needed some new clothes and stuff. He's preparing to go to England for a visit and some sightseeing. So, I went along and gave advice about things to take and things not to take. Things like comfortable shoes, clothes for both cool and warm weather and stuff like that. We also met up with another friend who had a job interview on Tuesday and gave him some moral support, along with crossing our fingers for him. Hopefully he'll hear back from them with a job offer. Yes, my fingers are still crossed.. lol

The firefighters are gaining a lot of ground with the fires from the lightning storm last month. According to Cal Fire there are 25 active fires burning in the state. And not all of them are from the lighting event. I've been putting the statistics for both the state and national fires up on the California Fire News website every day. Check it out... Hopefully the weather will hold and the firefighters will be able to contain the rest of the fires soon. The thing that worries me is that this is the end of July. Traditionally, the worst months for fires in California are September and October. We still have August to get through... Yikes.

As for the crime stuff I've been watching, first we have Drew Peterson, who's going to have to face the gun charges against him. Too bad for Mr. Brodsky, who predicted on a couple message boards and on TV that the gun charges would be dismissed. I wonder if he'll be making anymore predictions about Drew being charged in the death of Kathleen Savio or the disappearance and possible homicide of Stacy Peterson?

Another situation I've been watching and reading about is the missing 2 year old child in Florida, Caylee Anthony. The "drama" the child's mother, Casey Anthony, has caused is twisted beyond belief. Lies upon lies upon yet more lies. I truly feel sorry for the investigators in this one because even the Grandmother, Cindy Anthony, has been putting lies out. For instance, take the pizza in the car scenario that the Grandmother insists on. In the 911 call, she tells the dispatcher that the car smelled like it had a dead body in it. Later on, she tells the media and the court at Casey's bail hearing that the car had a bag of pizza in it for 12 days. What happened to the "dead body smell" that she was screaming about in the 911 call? One of news stations in Orlando, WFTV Channel 9, did an experiment. They put a whole pizza in a car in the hot Florida sun. Here's what they had to say about it: "But the Eyewitness News experiment doesn't support the smelly pizza theory after temperatures in the 90s. After seven days, the moisture was gone from the pizza and it had the consistency of shoe leather. More importantly, you have to get really close to smell anything and, when you do, the smell is pizza." And that is just one of the statements by the Grandmother or the Mom have made that have been proven false. The InSession message boards have a lot of information and a lot of speculation as well about the case.

At this point, it's going to take a miracle to bring that child home alive. I've never seen a missing child case in the news with so much misinformation handed out by the family that has been so easily proven to be false. The Grandmother rants on about how "no one is looking for Caylee" on all the news programs. But, how is anyone to even know where to start looking? The date she went missing keeps changing. We have no idea where the child was last seen because the Mom lied to the investigators about where the mysterious "nanny" lived. We have no clue what the child was wearing when she was last seen. Uhm.. Wouldn't that be an important bit of information? In normal missing child cases, it's reported to the police shortly after the child goes missing. In this case, the child being missing wasn't even reported until the child had been gone for 31 days! Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable.

Updates ~ Fires and Other Stuff

The California Fire News blog has some good updates on the fire conditions. The good news that I'm seeing is that the state is down to a total of 27 fires now. Bit by bit, the firefighters are gaining ground, especially when you consider that a month ago there were over 2,000 active fires in the state. All we can do is hope that the weather keeps cooperating with them so they can continue containing all the blazes. The blog owner, Bob Blogger, has also been putting some of his own photos up on the entries and one of them for today is pretty impressive. The winds have apparently changed directions again and are sending smoke down in the valley again today. When I step outside, there is a distinct aroma of smoke in the air. Ugh.

Other Stuff
I spoke to my Mom last night, and she's recovering very well from the surgery to have her pacemaker replaced. She says all she is taking for the pain is an occasional aspirin. It won't be long before she's back to 100% the way she's going.

Drew Peterson made the news again yesterday. After his friends let it out about the secret taping of their conversations, Drew and his attorney, Brodsky have been hitting all the news shows for interviews. The funny part is that yesterday morning, while Drew and Brodsky were being interviewed on the Today Show, his friend Len Wawczak was letting another "cat out of the bag". For a while now, there has been a blog where a woman/girl named "Ashley" was posting screen shots of her chats with Drew. In those chats, Drew was proclaiming his "love" for Ashley among other things. For instance, if you were watching Larry King a while back and saw Drew and Brodsky on there, with Drew tugging his ear fairly often, you were seeing Drew "signalling" his "love" to Ashley. Well, Ashley has "come out". Ashley was Drew's friend Len! I am quite sure that the news wasn't pleasant for Drew to hear... lol.. Almost every message board that I visited yesterday had folks laughing like crazy at Drew and his excuses. One of these days the Grand Jury in Will County will finish and hopefully will hand down some indictments against Drew. For his murdered exwife, Kathleen Savio, and for his missing wife, Stacy Peterson.

Hey! It's Wednesday!

And I should probably apologize for not posting anything yesterday. So I'll do that and then get on to the explanation. I'm sorry for not being on my computer yesterday! Uhm.. Well, I'm not that sorry.

I spent most of the day yesterday hanging around a hospital. Last Thursday, my Mom went in for the usual checkup on her pacemaker and they found that it wasn't working properly anymore so they scheduled her for surgery to replace it yesterday. We had to report to the hospital at 8am yesterday morning, so I had to get out of here well before that in order to get her to the hospital on time. No time for the computer then.

I met my folks at their house about 7:30, and we headed over to Rideout Hospital in Marysville. Mom already had most of the check-in stuff done before we went yesterday, so all she had to do was go up to the cardiac floor and check in at the nurses station. They got her settled in her room and we stayed there for a bit, at least until they started bringing in the needles and stuff to get her hooked up to the IV and the machines. Then my Step-Dad was ready for breakfast (or escaping from the needles!), so we left Mom there and headed back over the river to Yuba City, and the Cook'n'Pot restaurant (Mmm.. Good food!). After breakfast, we went to their doctor's office to pick up a prescription for Mom and then back to the hospital. Once back at the hospital, we settled in for the long wait. The wait before they took her to surgery, the wait while she was in surgery and the wait afterwards while they monitored the new pacemaker to be sure that it was doing the job it was meant for. I wish hospitals had more comfortable seats, both in the rooms and in the waiting areas! Anyway, we finally left the hospital around 5:30 or so and stopped at another restaurant, California Red's (Mmmm.. More good food!) for dinner. Poor Mom was pretty hungry by then. All she'd had all day was a dry turkey sandwich and some carrot sticks after she came out of surgery. By the time I got home last night, the computer (and the blog) was about the furthest thing from my mind. But, I'm back on it this morning....

Fire Stuff
I got a call this morning from a friend of mine. His wife works up in Paradise and he said she told him that the smoke this morning in Paradise was thick enough to cut with a knife. With the changes in the weather over the last couple of days, the smoke is hanging in there again. Bad. I noticed the increase in smokey air last night on my way home from my folk's house. The setting sun was the dark orange-red orb hanging above the coastal range again. I could look straight into it through my windshield as I drove home and it didn't bother my eyes at all.

For fire updates, go to the California Fire News blog. "Bob Blogger" is putting the information up there now. You'll even find a post from me on that blog today! I posted the newest satellite photo of the smoke and fires in California there earlier this morning. Yep! I am officially one of the writers for the California Fire News now! I won't be putting all of the stats up here on my blog anymore. If (and when) Bob Blogger gets called out to the fire lines with his water tender again, I'll be putting the updates from Cal Fire and the National Interagency Fire Center on his blog for him.

Other News
Drew Peterson hit the headlines in the papers again this morning. Drew is under suspicion in the death of wife number 3, Kathleen Salvio and is a suspect in the disappearance of wife number 4, Stacy Peterson. Apparently the investigators have him on tape now. They "recruited" two of his friends a while back. They wore "wires" when they went to "visit" Drew for several months. The friends are also the ones that were in the news recently in articles about that folding gun that Ric Mims mentioned a long while back. The articles in the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun Times are pretty interesting. It's also pretty interesting to see how Joel Brodsky, Drew's so-called attorney and Drew are trying to spin this new story. According to Mr. Brodsky, the whole taping thing never happened and according to both Drew and Brodsky, the only reason this is hitting the news is because those friends, Paula Stark and Len Wawczak are trying to "profit" from Drew's problems. Uhm. Yeah, sure Drew... (Insert rolling eyes icon here. LOL)

To end on a "positive" note, I'm going to put in a plug for the 3rd annual Kacie's Ride For Hope. The ride will be on September 13th and will start in Placerville. They've got a map posted on the website now that shows the route the ride will be going on. If you are at all interested in spending a day in the mountains on a bike (Meaning motorcycle type bike!) check this one out. All proceeds from the ride goes to a really good cause. To quote from the website: "All proceeds generated from ticket sales and raffle prizes, as well as cash donations will be donated for Emergency Services to "The Center for Violence-Free Relationships", formerly "The El Dorado Women's Center"." The website also has a lot of photos posted from last year's ride...

And, for the end of my post for this morning, here's another LOLCat picture... hehe...


more cat pictures

Monday Morning Fire Updates

This may be one of the last updates I do on the fires for a while. The fellow who blogs at California Fire News has come down off the mountain with his water tender. Until they call him back out again, that is. Anyway, he made some updates to his blog with the same sort of information that I've been posting and I know that more people look to his blog than mine. I doubt if all the information needs to be duplicated, so I will defer to the California Fire News blog once it's being updated regularly again. Yesterday, he posted an article from the Redding newspaper that gives an idea of what it takes to feed all those firefighters out there. It's well worth the read.

Anyway, that said, here's the statistics from Cal Fire for this morning. They're looking pretty good.

Statewide Fire Overview - Lightning Series

Current Situation: Over two thousand fires have been contained through the endless firefighting efforts of state, local and federal personnel and equipment from California, the rest of the nation and several foreign countries. Isolated thunderstorms are expected this afternoon over the northern and eastern mountains. Isolated showers and thunderstorms expected over the mountains and deserts of Southern California east of the Cajon Pass today. Firefighting priorities are the protection of life, property and natural resources.
Download the latest fact sheet. (Updated 7/21 at 9 a.m.)
Download the latest statewide map.

Statewide Fire Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 2,096
• Total Fires Contained: 2,063
• Total Active Fires: 33
• Total Acres Burned: 953,907

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred from state, local and federal firefighting agencies beginning June 20, 2008.

CAL FIRE Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 1,007
• Fires Contained: 1,004
• Active Fires: 3
• Acres Burned: 289,994

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred ONLY in CAL FIRE jurisdiction since June 20, 2008.

Statewide Resources Committed

• Personnel Committed: 15,573
• Fire Engines: 845
• Hand Crews: 404
• Dozers: 133
• Water Tenders: 247
• Helicopters: 90

Highway closures: Travel on state highways, county and local roads remains restricted throughout California due to wildfire and flood activities. All major roads are now open except for periodic closures on State Highway 299. Travelers are advised to seek current information on secondary road closures from local law enforcement. Click here for detailed road closures.

Evacuations: Areas of Humboldt, Trinity, Shasta, Lake and Mendocino counties are under evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders currently exist in areas in Monterey and Trinity counties. Residents are advised to monitor their local fire situation, check with local law enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when necessary. Click here for detailed evacuation information.

Structures:
Threatened : 4,958 residences, 139 commercial, 2,166 outbuildings.
Destroyed : 123 residences, 1 commercial, 138 outbuildings.

CAL FIRE Summary of Fires by County

Butte: The Butte Lightning Complex has burned 55,440 acres and is 90% contained. The Butte Fire Information Number is (530) 538-7826. Click Here for more information.

Shasta & Trinity: The Shasta and Trinity Lightning has burned 86,500 acres and is 95% contained. The Shasta-Trinity Unit Information Number is (530) 225-2510. Click Here for more information.

Mendocino: The Mendocino Lightning Complex burned 53,300 acres and is now 100% contained. The Mendocino Fire Information Number is (707)-467-6426. Click Here for more information.

Humboldt: The Humboldt Complex burned 1,325 acres and is now 100% contained.

Lassen, Modoc: The Corral Fire burned 12,434 acres and is now 100% contained. Click Here for more information.

Mariposa: The Oliver Fire burned 2,789 acres and now 100% contained.Click Here for more information.

Lake: The Walker Fire burned 14,500 acres and is now 100% contained. Click Here for more information.

Napa & Solano: The Wild Fire burned 40,000 acres and is now 100% contained. Click Here for more information.

Santa Clara: The Whitehurst and Hummingbird Fires burned a combined 994 acres and are both now 100% contained. Click Here for more information.

Its good to see the numbers for the total fires going down, and to see more and more of the fire complexes being contained, isn't it?

Cal Fire & National Fire Updates for 9am, 7/20

The news is looking good from the firelines. The total number of fires around the state has decreased again. It's down to 34 active fires in California. The weather is good here today, but from what they're saying, we could have thunderstorms "wandering" around sometime tomorrow. Hopefully if thunderstorms do happen, they will be wet ones. And I hope that they won't be the gully washers that cause flash floods or mud slides in the burned areas.

Here are the statistics from Cal Fire:

Statewide Fire Overview - Lightning Series

Current Situation: Over two thousand fires have been contained through the endless firefighting efforts of state, local and federal personnel and equipment from California, the rest of the nation and several foreign countries. An upper level low pressure will be gradually deepening offshore on Sunday, before moving onshore sometime Monday. By Monday it may be unstable enough to generate isolated localized thunderstorms in the North. Firefighting priorities are the protection of life, property and natural resources.
Download the latest fact sheet. (Updated 7/20 at 9 a.m.)
Download the latest statewide map.

Statewide Fire Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 2,096
• Total Fires Contained: 2,062
• Total Active Fires: 34
• Total Acres Burned: 940,782

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred from state, local and federal firefighting agencies beginning June 20, 2008.

CAL FIRE Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 1,007
• Fires Contained: 1,004
• Active Fires: 3
• Acres Burned: 289,994

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred ONLY in CAL FIRE jurisdiction since June 20, 2008.

Statewide Resources Committed

• Personnel Committed: 16,871
• Fire Engines: 909
• Hand Crews: 427
• Dozers: 154
• Water Tenders: 287
• Helicopters: 90

Highway closures: Travel on state highways, county and local roads remains restricted throughout California due to wildfire and flood activities. All major roads are now open except for periodic closures on State Highway 299. Travelers are advised to seek current information on secondary road closures from local law enforcement. Click here for detailed road closures.

Evacuations: Areas of Humboldt, Shasta, Lake and Mendocino counties are under evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders currently exist in areas in Monterey and Trinity counties. Residents are advised to monitor their local fire situation, check with local law enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when necessary. Click here for detailed evacuation information.

Structures:
Threatened : 5,111 residences, 139 commercial, 2,225 outbuildings.
Destroyed : 123 residences, 1 commercial, 140 outbuildings.

The National Interagency Fire Center has also updated their page with the newest information too. Here's what they have:

July 20, 2008

The large fires in northern California burned actively yesterday, where several communities are still under evacuation orders. Despite these conditions, firefighters are working hard and making progress toward containment goals. Yesterday, 114 new fires were reported across the country, but thanks to the initial attack efforts of firefighters, all of them remained small. Fire managers have prepositioned crews, engines, and aircraft in anticipation of the lightning storms that could hit the western states Monday and Tuesday.

Australia, New Zealand, and Canada are providing 59 fire specialists and managers to assist with fire suppression operations in California. Canada is also providing two crews to California.

Six MAFFS C-130 air tankers are supporting the State of California. All aircraft are based at McClellan Airport in Sacramento, California. The Mission Commander is LTC Mike Barkdull, 153rd Airlift Wing, Cheyenne, Wyoming. One aircraft is provided by the 145th Airlift Wing, Charlotte, North Carolina, three from the 302nd Airlift Wing, Colorado Springs, Colorado and two from the 153rd Airlift Wing, Cheyenne, Wyoming.

The following table lists the number of personnel assigned to the wildland fires in California. This information was provided by the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region and CalFire.

July 20, 2008
Resource	Federal	State	Other	Total
Total Personnel	6,245	4,512	6,114	16,871
Helicopters	40	1	49	90
Hand Crews	175	123	128	426
Engines	246	289	374	909
Dozers	6	10	138	154
Water Tenders	8	2	277	287
NOTE: Total personnel includes all personnel assigned to California. Individuals assigned to resources such as engines, dozers, overhead, etc. are included in the "total personnel" category. The "other" category includes contractors, military, and local government.

Weather Discussion: Most of the West will be hot and dry today. Widely scattered mixed wet and dry thunderstorms are expected over portions of the Great Basin, Wyoming, and Montana. Wet thunderstorms are forecast for the southern Sierra and the southern California mountains and deserts.

Source: National Interagency Coordination Center

Current Wildland Fires:

California

American River Complex (Tahoe National Forest): 20,541 acres at 75 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 11 miles northeast of Foresthill. Residences are threatened and evacuations are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 367-6223 or visit the web site.

Basin Complex (Los Padres National Forest): 133,709 acres at 70 percent contained. This complex is five miles southeast of Big Sur. Emergency Passes issued by the Monterey County Sheriffs Department are required for residents and their employees to enter the voluntary evacuation areas along the Carmel Valley Road and Cachagua Road. The passes are available at checkpoints 24 hours a day.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Bear Wallow Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 2,565 acres at zero percent contained. This complex of two fires is 13 miles southeast of Happy Camp. Visibility and terrain are hampering firefighter containment efforts. Approximately 16 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) has been closed. The trail closure extends from Etna Summit to the intersection of the PCT with the Canyon Creek Trail (#5532).
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

Blue 2 (Six Rivers National Forest): 4,465 acres at 22 percent contained. This fire is 12 miles east of Klamath. Cultural resources are threatened.
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

BTU Lightning Complex (Butte Unit, Cal Fire): 55,240 acres at 90 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 27 miles north of Yuba City. Fire activity was minimal yesterday.
Information: Call (530) 538-7826 or visit the web site.

Canyon Complex (Plumas National Forest): 35,105 acres at 71 percent contained. This complex of six fires is 16 miles northeast of Paradise. Communities and archeological sites are threatened.
Information: Call (530) 283-7882 or visit the web site.

Cub Complex (Lassen National Forest): 19,718 acres at 95 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 16 miles southwest of Chester. Traffic flow is restricted on Highway 32.
Information: Call (530) 258-3932 or visit the web site.

Gap (Los Padres National Forest): 9,443 acres at 97 percent contained. This fire is located six miles northwest of Santa Barbara. Structures are threatened.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Hell's Half Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 11,414 acres at 60 percent contained. This complex of two fires is eight miles southwest of Burnt Ranch. Communities are threatened. Mandatory evacuation of the Dry Lake area is in effect. Evacuations continue for 56 residences south of the fire.
Information: Call (530) 629-2184 or visit the web site.

Iron and Alps Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 55,545 acres at 49 percent contained. This complex of seven fires is one mile north of Junction City. Mandatory evacuations are still in effect for Corral Bottom and the following ares of Junction City: Red Hill, Cooper's Bar, Dutch Creek, Evan's Bar, and Soldier Creek.
Information: Call (530) 623-6415 or visit the web site.

Lime Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 89,823 acres at 67 percent contained. This complex of 11 fires is 14 miles west of Hayfork. Residences, ranches, camps, and private lands around Hyampom, Indian Valley, Hayfork Bally Lookout, Wildwood, Buck Camp, Saddle Camp; and Tomhead Lookout, South Mountain Road area, and communications towers are threatened. Cultural sites south of the Yellow fire, in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness are also threatened.
Information: Call (530) 226-2500 ext. 2 or visit the web site.

SHU Lightning Complex (Shasta-Trinity Unit, Cal Fire): 84,988 acres at 75 percent contained. This complex of two fires is in Shasta and Trinity counties. Residences are threatened and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 225-2510 or visit the web site.

Siskiyou Complex (Klamath National Forest): 48,000 acres at 20 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 18 miles southwest of Happy Camp. Steep, inaccessible terrain and rolling material continues to hamper containment efforts. Smoke trapped by inversions has hampered air operations. Significant Karuk and Yurok Tribal cultural and religious sites continue to be at risk. Structure protection is in effect along Highway 96, in cooperation with the Ukonom Complex.
Information: Call (530) 493-1518 or visit the web site.

Soda Complex (Mendocino National Forest): 8,581 acres at 79 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 15 miles northwest of Upper Lake. Active fire behavior was reported. Seven residences were evacuated between Deadmans Flat and Sunset Gap.
Information: Call (707) 275-2017 or visit the web site.

Ukonom Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 25,155 acres at 22 percent contained. This complex is 10 miles east of Orleans. Structures are threatened and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 627-3291 or visit the web site.

Colorado

Grand Complex (Grand Mesa National Forest): 1,632 acres at an unknown percent contained. This complex of two fires is 20 miles southeast of Grand Junction. It includes the Coal Creek fire. Fire activity was minimal.

Louisiana

Range (Kisatchie National Forest): 482 acres at 90 percent contained. This fire is 11 miles southwest of Alexandria. No new information was provided.

Nevada

NEW Callaghan (Battle Mountain Field Office, Bureau of Land Management): 630 acres at zero percent contained. This fire is 14 miles northeast of Austin. Extreme fire behavior was reported. Structures are threatened.

North Carolina

Evans Road (North Carolina Division of Forest Resources): 41,553 acres at 75 percent contained. This fire is located seven miles south of Creswell. Fire activity was minimal. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call 919-218-3179.

Texas

NEW Well 35 (Texas Forest Service): 1,200 acres at zero percent contained. This fire started on private land 26 miles west of Mineral Wells. Residences are threatened.

NEW Miller (Texas Forest Service): 482 acres at 90 percent contained. This fire started on private land two miles northeast of Memphis. Residences are threatened.

Virginia

South One (Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Reserve): 4,664 acres at 95 percent contained. This fire is located 12 miles southeast of Suffolk. No new information was provided.

Washington

Cold Spring (Gifford Pinchot National Forest): 7,956 acres at 60 percent contained. This fire is 40 miles northwest of Goldendale. Minimal fire behavior was reported. Cultural sites are threatened.

Spokane Valley (Washington Department of Natural Resources): 1,006 acres at 95 percent contained. This fire is four miles west of Spokane Valley. Fire activity was minimal. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call (123) 456-7890 or visit the web site.

I think I'll close with a funny... lol, Not a cat this time, but it does mention the feline types...

see more dog pictures

New Update from Cal Fire

The Cal Fire website has put up the update for this morning... I figured I'd add it in to the other post, but it's long enough as it is, I think.. lol.. So here's a new post with this morning's numbers:

Statewide Fire Overview - Lightning Series

Current Situation: Over two thousand fires have been contained through the endless firefighting efforts of state, local and federal personnel and equipment from California, the rest of the nation and several foreign countries. A weak low pressure system is entering northern California bringing cooler temperatures with a potential for widely scattered showers in the mountains. Southern California may see a potential of thunderstorms on Monday as monsoonal moisture attempts to surge back into the region. Firefighting priorities are the protection of life, property and natural resources .
Download the latest fact sheet. (Updated 7/19 at 9 a.m.)
Download the latest statewide map.

Statewide Fire Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 2,093
• Total Fires Contained: 2,055
• Total Active Fires: 38
• Total Acres Burned: 926,427

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred from state, local and federal firefighting agencies beginning June 20, 2008.

CAL FIRE Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 1,007
• Fires Contained: 1,004
• Active Fires: 3
• Acres Burned: 289,994

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred ONLY in CAL FIRE jurisdiction since June 20, 2008.

Statewide Resources Committed

• Personnel Committed: 17,643
• Fire Engines: 1,025
• Hand Crews: 428
• Dozers: 167
• Water Tenders: 306
• Helicopters: 102

Highway closures: Travel on state highways, county and local roads remains restricted throughout California due to wildfire and flood activities. All major roads are now open with potential delays on State Highways 32, 70 and 299. Travelers are advised to seek current information on secondary road closures from local law enforcement. Click here for detailed road closures.

Evacuations: Areas of Humboldt, Shasta and Trinity counties are under evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders currently exist in areas in Monterey and Trinity counties. Residents are advised to monitor their local fire situation, check with local law enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when necessary. Click here for detailed evacuation information.

Structures:
Threatened : 5,178 residences, 96 commercial, 1,975 outbuildings.
Destroyed : 123 residences, 1 commercial, 140 outbuildings.

CAL FIRE Summary of Fires by County

Butte: The Butte Lightning Complex has burned 55,240 acres and is 85% contained. The Butte Fire Information Number is (530) 538-7826.

Shasta & Trinity: The Shasta and Trinity Lightning has burned 84,988 acres and is 65% contained. The Shasta-Trinity Unit Information Number is (530) 225-2510.

Mendocino: The Mendocino Lightning Complex burned 53,300 acres and is now 100% contained. The Mendocino Fire Information Number is (707)-467-6426.

Humboldt: The Humboldt Complex burned 1,325 acres and is now 100% contained.

Lassen, Modoc: The Corral Fire burned 12,434 acres and is now 100% contained.

Mariposa: The Oliver Fire burned 2,789 acres and now 100% contained.

Lake: The Walker Fire burned 14,500 acres and is now 100% contained.

Napa & Solano: The Wild Fire burned 40,000 acres and is now 100% contained.

Santa Clara: The Whitehurst and Hummingbird Fires burned a combined 994 acres and are both now 100% contained.

Tehama & Glenn: The Tehama-Glenn Lightning Complex burned 22,907 acres and is now 100% contained.

Major Federal and Local Incidents
For information on major federal incidents click here.

Maps and Links
For incident maps, resources available to fire victims or to volunteer, visit our Maps and Links page.

Fire Updates are Looking Good!

The weather is fair this morning, cool but no breeze. The sky looks a little hazy this morning, but it's sort of blue when I look straight up. This morning's fire update isn't on the Cal Fire website yet (They seem to be getting slower and slower about updating lately.. lol), but I can post the update from 9pm last night.

Statewide Fire Overview - Lightning Series

Current Situation: Over two thousand fires have been contained through the endless firefighting efforts of state, local and federal personnel and equipment from California, the rest of the nation and several foreign countries. A weak low pressure system will enter northern California beginning Saturday with only widely scattered showers predicted in the mountains. Southern California may see a potential of thunderstorms on Monday as monsoonal moisture attempts to surge back into the region. Firefighting priorities are the protection of life, property and natural resources.
Download the latest fact sheet. (Updated 7/18 at 9 p.m.)
Download the latest statewide map.

Statewide Fire Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 2,093
• Total Fires Contained: 2,055
• Total Active Fires: 38
• Total Acres Burned: 920,075

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred from state, local and federal firefighting agencies beginning June 20, 2008.

CAL FIRE Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 1,007
• Fires Contained: 1,000
• Active Fires: 7
• Acres Burned: 265,011

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred ONLY in CAL FIRE jurisdiction since June 20, 2008.

Statewide Resources Committed

• Personnel Committed: 17,381
• Fire Engines: 1,029
• Hand Crews: 424
• Dozers: 170
• Water Tenders: 304
• Helicopters: 100

Highway closures: Travel on state highways, county and local roads remains restricted throughout California due to wildfire and flood activities. All major roads are now open with potential delays on State Highways 32, 70 and 299. Travelers are advised to seek current information on secondary road closures from local law enforcement. Click here for detailed road closures.

Evacuations: Areas of Humboldt, Shasta and Trinity counties are under evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders currently exist in areas in Kern (flood hazard), Monterey and Trinity counties. Residents are advised to monitor their local fire situation, check with local law enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when necessary.. Click here for detailed evacuation information.

Structures:
Threatened : 5,183 residences, 97 commercial, 1,979 outbuildings.
Destroyed : 102 residences, 1 commercial, 139 outbuildings.

And here are the statistics from the National Interagency Fire Center:

July 19, 2008

Firefighters continue to make good progress on the large fires in California, a few are expected to be contained over the weekend. Yesterday, 163 new fires were reported, but thanks to the initial attack efforts of firefighters, all of them remained small. Fire managers have prepositioned crews, engines, and aircraft in anticipation of the lightning storms that could hit the western states this weekend.

Australia, New Zealand, and Canada are providing 59 fire specialists and managers to assist with fire suppression operations in California. Canada is also providing two crews to California.

Six MAFFS C-130 air tankers are supporting the State of California. All aircraft are based at McClellan Airport in Sacramento, California. The Mission Commander is LTC Mike Barkdull, 153rd Airlift Wing, Cheyenne, Wyoming. One aircraft is provided by the 145th Airlift Wing, Charlotte, North Carolina, three from the 302nd Airlift Wing,
Colorado Springs, Colorado and two from the 153rd Airlift Wing, Cheyenne, Wyoming.

The following table lists the number of personnel assigned to the wildland fires in California. This information was provided by the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region and CalFire.

July 19, 2008
Resource	Federal	State	Other	Total
Total Personnel	6,205	4,976	6,462	17,463
Helicopters	57	1	44	102
Hand Crews	175	124	129	428
Engines	239	374	412	1,025
Dozers	7	16	144	167
Water Tenders	8	7	291	306
Overhead	1,423	892	1,035	3,350
NOTE: Total personnel includes all personnel assigned to California. Individuals assigned to resources such as engines, dozers, overhead, etc. are included in the "total personnel" category. The "other" category includes contractors, military, and local government.

Weather Discussion: Chance of a few thunderstorms over northern California, southern Oregon and the Great Basin today. Otherwise, hot and dry over much of the West. Gusty winds are expected in Montana, Wyoming and parts of the Great Basin.

Source: National Interagency Coordination Center

Below, I'm adding the list of fires from the National Interagency Fire Center for all the active fires, not just the ones in California.

California

American River Complex (Tahoe National Forest): 19,992 acres at 65 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 11 miles northeast of Foresthill. Residences are threatened and road closures are in effect. Two hundred members of the California National Guard will begin a three-day training exercise today in fire suppression techniques on the fire's southern flank.
Information: Call (530) 367-6223 or visit the web site.

Basin Complex (Los Padres National Forest): 129,840 acres at 70 percent contained. This complex is five miles southeast of Big Sur. Mandatory evacuation for cabins in the Santa Lucia Tract remains in effect.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Bear Wallow Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 2,320 acres at zero percent contained. This complex of two fires is 13 miles southeast of Happy Camp. Minimal fire behavior was reported.
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

Blue 2 (Six Rivers National Forest): 4,465 acres at 22 percent contained. This fire is 12 miles east of Klamath. Cultural resources are threatened.
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

BTU Lightning Complex (Butte Unit, Cal Fire): 55,240 acres at 85 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 27 miles north of Yuba City. Fire activity increased yesterday.
Information: Call (530) 538-7826 or visit the web site.

Canyon Complex (Plumas National Forest): 34,139 acres at 64 percent contained. This complex of six fires is 16 miles northeast of Paradise. Communities and archeological sites are threatened.
Information: Call (530) 283-7882 or visit the web site.

Cub Complex (Lassen National Forest): 19,718 acres at 90 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 16 miles southwest of Chester. Traffic flow is restricted on Highway 32.
Information: Call (530) 258-3932 or visit the web site.

Gap (Los Padres National Forest): 9,443 acres at 97 percent contained. This fire is located six miles northwest of Santa Barbara. Structures are threatened.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Hell's Half Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 10,917 acres at 50 percent contained. This complex of two fires is eight miles southwest of Burnt Ranch. Communities are threatened. Evacuation orders are in effect for the Big Slide and Hyampom West areas.
Information: Call (530) 629-2184 or visit the web site.

Iron and Alps Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 52,161 acres at 45 percent contained. This complex of seven fires is one mile north of Junction City. Mandatory evacuations are in effect for Corral Bottom, Red Hill,Cooper's Bar, Dutch Creek, Evan's Bar, and Soldier Creek.
Information: Call (530) 623-6415 or visit the web site.

Lime Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 86,964 acres at 65 percent contained. This complex of 11 fires is 14 miles west of Hayfork. Communities, ranches, and youth camps are threatened.
Information: Call (530) 226-2500 ext. 2 or visit the web site.

Piute (Sequoia National Forest): 37,026 acres at 97 percent contained. This fire is 17 miles northeast of Caliente. This will be the last report unless significant activity occurs.
Information: Call (760) 549-0213 or the web site.

SHU Lightning Complex (Shasta-Trinity Unit, Cal Fire): 84,988 acres at 65 percent contained. This complex of two fires is in Shasta and Trinity counties. Residences are threatened and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 225-2510 or visit the web site.

Siskiyou Complex (Klamath National Forest): 45,100 acres at 20 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 18 miles southwest of Happy Camp. Residences and cultural sites are threatened. Forest road, campground and trail closures in effect.
Information: Call (530) 493-1518 or visit the web site.

Soda Complex (Mendocino National Forest): 8,360 acres at 79 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 15 miles northwest of Upper Lake. Active fire behavior was reported. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call (707) 275-2017 or visit the web site.

Ukonom Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 24,593 acres at 22 percent contained. This complex is 10 miles east of Orleans. Structures are threatened and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 627-3291 or visit the web site.

Colorado

Grand Complex (Grand Mesa National Forest): 1,632 acres at an unknown percent contained. This complex of two fires is 20 miles southeast of Grand Junction. It includes the Coal Creek fire. Fire activity was minimal.

Louisiana

Range (Kisatchie National Forest): 482 acres at 90 percent contained. This fire is 11 miles southwest of Alexandria. Fire behavior was minimal.

North Carolina

Evans Road (North Carolina Division of Forest Resources): 41,553 acres at 75 percent contained. This fire is located seven miles south of Creswell. Fire activity was minimal. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call 919-218-3179.

Virginia

South One (Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Reserve): 4,664 acres at 95 percent contained. This fire is located 12 miles southeast of Suffolk. Minimal fire activity was reported.

Washington

Badger Mountain (Washington Department of Natural Resources): 15,023 acres at 98 percent contained. The fire is eight miles north of East Wenatchee. This will be the last report unless significant activity occurs.
Information: Call (509) 888-1364 or visit the web site.

Cold Spring (Gifford Pinchot National Forest): 7,956 acres at 50 percent contained. This fire is 40 miles northwest of Goldendale. Minimal fire behavior was reported. Cultural sites are threatened.

Spokane Valley (Washington Department of Natural Resources): 1,006 acres at 90 percent contained. This fire is four miles west of Spokane Valley. Fire activity was minimal. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call (123) 456-7890 or visit the web site.

The Modis Rapid Response System website hasn't had any satellite photos of California in a few days now, but some of the other ones they've been posting in the gallery are pretty interesting. A while back, I posted one of fires in Russia, so I'm posting another one from Russia today. It looks like the same area that I posted before. Just lots more smoke and fires, it looks like.
I surfed through the images on the "Real Time" link on the Modis page and found one of the images that shows California. I downloaded it and cropped the image to show just the part I wanted, but it does show the fires and the smoke as of yesterday.

Simon's Cat ~ TV Dinner

I'll be posting updates on the fires in the morning, but for now, I'm posting a cute animated movie... I love the Simon's Cat videos on YouTube.. lol..



Anyway, the number of active fires all over the state have gone down to 38 according to the Cal Fire website! Fantastic news, isn't it? I'll grab all the stats in the morning and get them posted. (I sure hope no one was here specifically looking for fire updates today! Sorry about that!)

The InSessions message board came back up sometime this afternoon (I'm not quite sure what time it happened.. lol) and there has been a bit of new news posted there about a couple of the cases I've been watching, so tomorrow I'll see about adding that news into the blog as well.

Slow Updates

I had been putting off putting the update up for the fires until the Cal Fire site got this morning's stats up, but for some reason, they're still not there. The only information on the site is from 9PM last night (as of 1:20pm today.) I'll add those, but the National Interagency Fire Center has some updated stats... So.. Both will be on here.. Sort of.. lol..

Here's the Cal Fire stats from last night:

Statewide Fire Overview - Lightning Series

Current Situation: Over two thousand fires have been contained due to the endless firefighting efforts of state, local and federal personnel and equipment from California, as well as from the rest of the nation and several foreign countries. Generally favorable weather conditions have resulted in continuing good progress on the fire lines. The southern Sierra Nevada again experienced thundershower activity, with numerous lightning strikes, this afternoon. The priority of firefighting is for the protection of life, property and natural resources.
Download the latest fact sheet. (Updated 7/16 at 9 p.m.)
Download the latest statewide map.

Statewide Fire Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 2,093
• Total Fires Contained: 2,050
• Total Active Fires: 43
• Total Acres Burned: 887,315

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred from state, local and federal firefighting agencies beginning June 20, 2008.

CAL FIRE Statistics

• Total Fires at Peak: 1,005
• Fires Contained: 994
• Active Fires: 11
• Acres Burned: 262,133

These numbers are total fires and acres that have occurred ONLY in CAL FIRE jurisdiction since June 20, 2008.
The number of contained and active fires will not equal the total due to some fires merging together.

Statewide Resources Committed

• Personnel Committed: 18,571
• Fire Engines: 1,104
• Hand Crews: 447
• Dozers: 196
• Water Tenders: 326
• Helicopters: 110

Highway closures: Travel on state highways, county and local roads remains restricted throughout California due to wildfire and flood activities. All major roads are now open with delays on State Highways 32 and 70 . Travelers are advised to seek current information on secondary road closures from local law enforcement. Click here for detailed road closures.

Evacuations:Areas of Monterey, Shasta and Trinity counties are under evacuation orders at this time. Precautionary evacuation orders currently exist in areas in Butte, Kern (flash flooding) and Trinity counties. Residents are advised to monitor their local fire situation, check with local law enforcement agencies for information, and be prepared to evacuate when necessary. Click here for detailed evacuation information.

Structures:
Threatened : 5,360 residences, 97 commercial, 1,970 outbuildings.
Destroyed : 101 residences, 1 commercial, 138 outbuildings.

Only 43 active fires statewide as of last night. It's good to see the numbers decreasing so steadily. Here's the information from the National Interagency Fire Center:

July 17, 2008

Firefighters continue to make progress on the large fires in California, where 18 large fires or complexes are still burning. Three large fires were contained yesterday, one each in Idaho Texas, and Washington. Fire managers are preparing for dry lightning storms expected to hit parts of the northern California and southern Oregon by Saturday.

Eight MAFFS C-130 airtankers are supporting California. The aircraft are based at McClellan Airport in Sacramento, California. The Mission Commander is LTC Roger Williams, 145th Air Wing Air National Guard, North Carolina. Aircraft are provided by the 145th Airlift Wing, Charlotte North Carolina, the 302nd Airlift Wing, Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the 153rd Airlift Wing from Cheyenne, Wyoming.

The following table lists the number of personnel assigned to the wildland fires in California. This information was provided by the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region and CalFire.

July 17, 2008
Resource	Federal	State	Other	Total
Total Personnel	6,139	5,510	6,914	18,563
Helicopters	52	2	53	207
Hand Crews	171	133	143	447
Engines	229	276	578	1,083
Dozers	10	27	159	196
Water Tenders	7	18	300	325
Overhead	1,519	953	1,063	3,535
NOTE: Total personnel includes all personnel assigned to California. Individuals assigned to resources such as engines, dozers, overhead, etc. are included in the "total personnel" category. The "other" category includes contractors, military, and local government.

Weather Discussion: Mixed wet and dry thunderstorms will continue in central Idaho and western Montana, with wet thunderstorms east of the Continental Divide and through the Four-Corner states. Southern California may still see thunderstorms in eastern sections of the area through Friday.

Source: National Interagency Coordination Center

American River Complex (Tahoe National Forest): 19,322 acres at 55 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 11 miles northeast of Foresthill. Residences are threatened and evacuations are in place.
Information: Call (530) 367-6223 or visit the web site.

Basin Complex (Los Padres National Forest): 122,980 acres at 61 percent contained. This complex is five miles southeast of Big Sur. Residences are threatened and evacuations are in place.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Bear Wallow Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 2,037 acres at zero percent contained. This complex of two fires is 13 miles southeast of Happy Camp. Moderate fire behavior was reported.
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

Blue 2 (Six Rivers National Forest): 3,950 acres at 16 percent contained. This fire is 12 miles east of Klamath. Cultural resources are threatened.
Information: Call (707) 457-3879 or visit the web site.

BTU Lightning Complex (Butte Unit, Cal Fire): 54,300 acres at 80 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 27 miles north of Yuba City. Fire activity was minimal yesterday.
Information: Call (530) 538-7826 or visit the web site.

Canyon Complex (Plumas National Forest): 32,352 acres at 66 percent contained. This complex of six fires is 16 miles northeast of Paradise. Communities and archeological sites are threatened. Area closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 283-7882 or visit the web site.

Cub Complex (Lassen National Forest): 19,000 acres at 78 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 16 miles southwest of Chester. A precautionary threat evacuation notice for Butte Meadows and Jonesville is still in effect. Highway 32 is closed.
Information: Call (530) 258-3932 or visit the web site.

Gap (Los Padres National Forest): 9,443 acres at 90 percent contained. This fire is located six miles northwest of Santa Barbara. Structures are threatened.
Information: Call (805) 961-5770 or visit the web site.

Hell's Half Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 10,192 acres at 35 percent contained. This complex of two fires is eight miles southwest of Burnt Ranch. Communities are threatened. Evacuation orders are in effect for the Big Slide and Hyampom West areas.
Information: Call (530) 629-2184 or visit the web site.

Iron and Alps Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 47,066 acres at 46 percent contained. This complex of seven fires is one mile north of Junction City. Advisory evacuations are in effect for several communities.
Information: Call (530) 623-6415 or visit the web site.

Lime Complex (Shasta-Trinity National Forest): 82,726 acres at 62 percent contained. This complex of 11 fires is 14 miles west of Hayfork. Communities, ranches, and youth camps are threatened.
Information: Call (530) 226-2500 ext. 2 or visit the web site.

MEU Lightning Complex (Mendocino Unit, Cal Fire): 53,300 acres at 95 percent contained. This complex of three fires is in Mendocino county. Minimal fire activity was reported.
Information: Call 707-467-6426 or visit the web site.

Piute (Sequoia National Forest): 37,026 acres at 95 percent contained. This fire is 17 miles northeast of Caliente. Flash flood evacuations and area closures in effect. Fire activity was minimal.
Information: Call (760) 549-0213 or the web site .

SHU Lightning Complex (Shasta-Trinity Unit, Cal Fire): 82,536 acres at 60 percent contained. This complex of two fires is in Shasta and Trinity counties. Several evacuations orders are in place. Visit the web site for the most current information.
Information: Call (530) 225-2510 or visit the web site.

Siskiyou Complex (Klamath National Forest): 39,750 acres at 18 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 18 miles southwest of Happy Camp. Residences and cultural sites are threatened. Area and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 493-1518 or visit the web site.

Soda Complex (Mendocino National Forest): 8,317 acres at 69 percent contained. This complex of two fires is 15 miles northwest of Upper Lake. Crews made excellent progress on line construction. Residences are threatened.
Information: Call (707) 275-2017 or visit the web site.

Ukonom Complex (Six Rivers National Forest): 22,926 acres at 22 percent contained. This complex is 10 miles east of Orleans. Structures are threatened and road closures are in effect.
Information: Call (530) 627-3291 or visit the web site.

What is really good to see is the list of fires that have been contained.

Humboldt: The Humboldt Complex burned 1,325 acres and is now 100% contained.

Lassen, Modoc: The Corral Fire burned 12,434 acres and is now 100% contained.

Mariposa: The Oliver Fire burned 2,789 acres and now 100% contained.

Lake: The Walker Fire burned 14,500 acres and is now 100% contained.

Napa & Solano: The Wild Fire burned 40,000 acres and is now 100% contained.

Santa Clara: The Whitehurst and Hummingbird Fires burned a combined 994 acres and are both now 100% contained.

Tehama & Glenn: The Tehama-Glenn Lightning Complex burned 22,907 acres and is now 100% contained.

I have a hunch that the delay with Cal Fire getting this morning's updates onto their website has something to do with the fact that President Bush is supposed to be visiting the state and viewing the fires and fire damage. I've seen a number of news articles about his visit and from what I gather, he and the governor will be in the Redding area today. I'll try to update the blog if and when the Cal Fire site updates the statistics. Meanwhile, I need to go close up windows and turn on my air conditioners because it's getting hot in this house... lol