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North Complex Fire
The North Complex Fire was a massive wildfire complex that burned in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California in the counties of Plumas and Butte. Twenty-one fires were started by lightning on August 17, 2020; by September 5, all the individual fires had been put out with the exception of the Claremont and Bear Fires, which merged on that date, and the Sheep Fire, which was then designated a separate incident. On September 8, strong winds caused the Bear/Claremont Fire to explode in size, rapidly spreading to the southwest. On September 8, 2020, the towns of Berry Creek and Feather Falls were immediately evacuated at 3:15 p.m. PDT with no prior warning. By September 9, 2020, the towns of Berry Creek and Feather Falls had been leveled, with few homes left standing. The fire threatened the city of Oroville, before its westward spread was stopped. The fire killed 16 people and injured more than 100. The complex burned an estimated 318,935 acres (129,068 ha), and was 100% contained on December 3. The fire was managed by the U.S. Forest Service in conjunction with Cal Fire, with the primary incident base in Quincy. The North Complex Fire is the eighth-largest in California's history, and was the deadliest fire in the 2020 California wildfire season.
On August 17, 2020, dry thunderstorms sparked 21 wildfires in the Plumas National Forest and Lassen National Forest, the largest of which were the Claremont and Bear Fires along the canyon of the Middle Fork Feather River. The storms came from a large plume of moisture from Tropical Storm Fausto that were carried into California, which started hundreds of wildfires simultaneously across Northern and Central California. By August 22, 16 of the original 21 fires had been contained. The Sheep Fire near Susanville was originally included as part of the North Complex, but on September 5, it was assigned to a separate incident. The Sheep Fire burned about 29,570 acres (11,970 ha), before it was fully contained on September 9.
The Claremont Fire was spotted around 9:00 a.m. PDT on August 17. The fire originated along Claremont Creek, a tributary of the Middle Fork just south of Quincy, and quickly jumped the ridge northwards towards American Valley. On August 20 an evacuation advisory was issued for East Quincy which was quickly changed to a mandatory evacuation for East Quincy and residents along Quincy-La Porte Road. On August 22 the fire jumped California State Route 70 at the Massack Rest Area southeast of Quincy. On August 23, aided by high winds, the fire began advancing rapidly east forcing Spring Garden and Greenhorn to be evacuated. The fire threatened State Route 70 and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, shutting both down intermittently for several days.
On August 27, the Claremont Fire was at 20,697 acres (8,376 ha) and 47 percent contained. Mandatory evacuations were lifted in East Quincy, but with continued strong west winds, Greenhorn and Sloat to the east were evacuated on August 28. On August 30 crews conducted backfire operations on the eastern side of the fire and prevented it from spreading towards Spring Garden and Cromberg. On September 1 mandatory evacuations were lifted for Quincy-La Porte Road. On September 5, with fire activity much lower on the eastern sides, evacuation orders were lifted for Spring Garden, Greenhorn, Sloat and Cromberg. On the morning of August 31, the North Complex Fire was at 22,780 acres (9,220 ha), and 59 percent contained. On the morning of September 4 it had grown to 24,330 acres (9,850 ha), and containment had dropped to 49 percent.
The Bear Fire was also spotted around 9:00 a.m. on August 17, in the Middle Fork canyon west of the Claremont Fire near the Pacific Crest Trail. The fire started in rough, roadless country along the Wild and Scenic section of the Middle Fork. An effort was made to staff the fire on August 18, but an increase in fire activity forced fire crews to withdraw. After that point, because of limited firefighting resources, the Bear Fire was left unstaffed because it wasn't immediately a threat to people or property, it was in steep, rugged terrain, and resources were scarce due to the fires burning across the state. Efforts were concentrated on the Claremont Fire. By August 23, it was at 1,661 acres (672 ha). On August 26, some areas around Bucks Lake were placed under evacuation advisory due to increased fire activity on the Bear Fire. Crews also were working on containment line to the northeast as the fire expanded slightly towards Quincy. By August 31 it had grown to 9,570 acres (3,870 ha), and was still 0 percent contained. On the morning of September 4 it was at 12,154 acres (4,919 ha), and was 29 percent contained.
While crews concentrated on structure protection and building containment line around the perimeter of the fires, the unpopulated area between the Claremont and Bear fires was allowed to burn naturally with the help of backfiring operations, and the two fires merged on September 5, at a combined 39,779 acres (16,098 ha). A total of 1,386 personnel were assigned to the fire. The southern boundary of the fire was mostly held along the Middle Fork, and crews worked to build secondary containment lines south of the river. Flames crossed the river in a few areas but were quickly contained.
On the morning of September 8 a dry cold front moved in, bringing strong northeast winds and threatening the incomplete containment line along the river. At about 10:00 a.m., the fire jumped the river near Horshoe Bend and began heading rapidly southwest. With winds gusting to 45 miles per hour (72 km/h), the spot fire had grown to 1,000 acres (400 ha) within an hour, and by 3:00 p.m. it had grown to more than 20,000 acres (8,100 ha). At 11:50 a.m., mandatory evacuations were issued for La Porte and Little Grass Valley Reservoir. As winds picked up throughout the day, evacuation orders were issued by 3:25 p.m. for several communities in Butte County including Feather Falls, Clipper Mills, Berry Creek, Brush Creek, Woodleaf and Forbestown, and around Miners Ranch Road and California State Route 162. Evacuation orders were also effective in Yuba County for residents along La Porte Road, New York Flat Road, and around Brownsville and New Bullards Bar Reservoir. By the afternoon of September 8 the fire had burned more than 58,000 acres (23,000 ha). At 11:00 p.m. PDT, Kelly Ridge and Copley Hills, near Lake Oroville, were evacuated, as officials predicted strong winds would lead to continuing extreme fire behavior.
On the early morning of September 9, evacuation warnings were issued for more areas around Lake Oroville, Concow and Paradise and in Plumas County, a mandatory evacuation order was issued for Bucks Lake and an evacuation advisory for Meadow Valley. As predicted, high winds continued to drive the fire rapidly downhill and southwest, traveling 20 miles (32 km) to Lake Oroville in a few hours, threatening the city of Oroville. By 8:35 a.m., the fire was estimated at more than 150,000 acres (61,000 ha). The entire town of Berry Creek was destroyed, with only 3 houses left standing in the town of 1,200. Homes were also burned in several nearby communities, such as Feather Falls. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at University of California Los Angeles, compared the explosive wind-driven spread with the 2018 Camp Fire, which occurred just north of this area.
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North Complex Fire
The North Complex Fire was a massive wildfire complex that burned in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California in the counties of Plumas and Butte. Twenty-one fires were started by lightning on August 17, 2020; by September 5, all the individual fires had been put out with the exception of the Claremont and Bear Fires, which merged on that date, and the Sheep Fire, which was then designated a separate incident. On September 8, strong winds caused the Bear/Claremont Fire to explode in size, rapidly spreading to the southwest. On September 8, 2020, the towns of Berry Creek and Feather Falls were immediately evacuated at 3:15 p.m. PDT with no prior warning. By September 9, 2020, the towns of Berry Creek and Feather Falls had been leveled, with few homes left standing. The fire threatened the city of Oroville, before its westward spread was stopped. The fire killed 16 people and injured more than 100. The complex burned an estimated 318,935 acres (129,068 ha), and was 100% contained on December 3. The fire was managed by the U.S. Forest Service in conjunction with Cal Fire, with the primary incident base in Quincy. The North Complex Fire is the eighth-largest in California's history, and was the deadliest fire in the 2020 California wildfire season.
On August 17, 2020, dry thunderstorms sparked 21 wildfires in the Plumas National Forest and Lassen National Forest, the largest of which were the Claremont and Bear Fires along the canyon of the Middle Fork Feather River. The storms came from a large plume of moisture from Tropical Storm Fausto that were carried into California, which started hundreds of wildfires simultaneously across Northern and Central California. By August 22, 16 of the original 21 fires had been contained. The Sheep Fire near Susanville was originally included as part of the North Complex, but on September 5, it was assigned to a separate incident. The Sheep Fire burned about 29,570 acres (11,970 ha), before it was fully contained on September 9.
The Claremont Fire was spotted around 9:00 a.m. PDT on August 17. The fire originated along Claremont Creek, a tributary of the Middle Fork just south of Quincy, and quickly jumped the ridge northwards towards American Valley. On August 20 an evacuation advisory was issued for East Quincy which was quickly changed to a mandatory evacuation for East Quincy and residents along Quincy-La Porte Road. On August 22 the fire jumped California State Route 70 at the Massack Rest Area southeast of Quincy. On August 23, aided by high winds, the fire began advancing rapidly east forcing Spring Garden and Greenhorn to be evacuated. The fire threatened State Route 70 and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, shutting both down intermittently for several days.
On August 27, the Claremont Fire was at 20,697 acres (8,376 ha) and 47 percent contained. Mandatory evacuations were lifted in East Quincy, but with continued strong west winds, Greenhorn and Sloat to the east were evacuated on August 28. On August 30 crews conducted backfire operations on the eastern side of the fire and prevented it from spreading towards Spring Garden and Cromberg. On September 1 mandatory evacuations were lifted for Quincy-La Porte Road. On September 5, with fire activity much lower on the eastern sides, evacuation orders were lifted for Spring Garden, Greenhorn, Sloat and Cromberg. On the morning of August 31, the North Complex Fire was at 22,780 acres (9,220 ha), and 59 percent contained. On the morning of September 4 it had grown to 24,330 acres (9,850 ha), and containment had dropped to 49 percent.
The Bear Fire was also spotted around 9:00 a.m. on August 17, in the Middle Fork canyon west of the Claremont Fire near the Pacific Crest Trail. The fire started in rough, roadless country along the Wild and Scenic section of the Middle Fork. An effort was made to staff the fire on August 18, but an increase in fire activity forced fire crews to withdraw. After that point, because of limited firefighting resources, the Bear Fire was left unstaffed because it wasn't immediately a threat to people or property, it was in steep, rugged terrain, and resources were scarce due to the fires burning across the state. Efforts were concentrated on the Claremont Fire. By August 23, it was at 1,661 acres (672 ha). On August 26, some areas around Bucks Lake were placed under evacuation advisory due to increased fire activity on the Bear Fire. Crews also were working on containment line to the northeast as the fire expanded slightly towards Quincy. By August 31 it had grown to 9,570 acres (3,870 ha), and was still 0 percent contained. On the morning of September 4 it was at 12,154 acres (4,919 ha), and was 29 percent contained.
While crews concentrated on structure protection and building containment line around the perimeter of the fires, the unpopulated area between the Claremont and Bear fires was allowed to burn naturally with the help of backfiring operations, and the two fires merged on September 5, at a combined 39,779 acres (16,098 ha). A total of 1,386 personnel were assigned to the fire. The southern boundary of the fire was mostly held along the Middle Fork, and crews worked to build secondary containment lines south of the river. Flames crossed the river in a few areas but were quickly contained.
On the morning of September 8 a dry cold front moved in, bringing strong northeast winds and threatening the incomplete containment line along the river. At about 10:00 a.m., the fire jumped the river near Horshoe Bend and began heading rapidly southwest. With winds gusting to 45 miles per hour (72 km/h), the spot fire had grown to 1,000 acres (400 ha) within an hour, and by 3:00 p.m. it had grown to more than 20,000 acres (8,100 ha). At 11:50 a.m., mandatory evacuations were issued for La Porte and Little Grass Valley Reservoir. As winds picked up throughout the day, evacuation orders were issued by 3:25 p.m. for several communities in Butte County including Feather Falls, Clipper Mills, Berry Creek, Brush Creek, Woodleaf and Forbestown, and around Miners Ranch Road and California State Route 162. Evacuation orders were also effective in Yuba County for residents along La Porte Road, New York Flat Road, and around Brownsville and New Bullards Bar Reservoir. By the afternoon of September 8 the fire had burned more than 58,000 acres (23,000 ha). At 11:00 p.m. PDT, Kelly Ridge and Copley Hills, near Lake Oroville, were evacuated, as officials predicted strong winds would lead to continuing extreme fire behavior.
On the early morning of September 9, evacuation warnings were issued for more areas around Lake Oroville, Concow and Paradise and in Plumas County, a mandatory evacuation order was issued for Bucks Lake and an evacuation advisory for Meadow Valley. As predicted, high winds continued to drive the fire rapidly downhill and southwest, traveling 20 miles (32 km) to Lake Oroville in a few hours, threatening the city of Oroville. By 8:35 a.m., the fire was estimated at more than 150,000 acres (61,000 ha). The entire town of Berry Creek was destroyed, with only 3 houses left standing in the town of 1,200. Homes were also burned in several nearby communities, such as Feather Falls. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at University of California Los Angeles, compared the explosive wind-driven spread with the 2018 Camp Fire, which occurred just north of this area.