Beckwourth Complex at 100,531 acres, 68 percent containment

The morning of Thursday, July 15 brings news that the Beckwourth Complex has grown yet again, with morning numbers at 99,937 acres for the Sugar Fire and a reduction in overall containment to 68 percent. With the Dotta Fire at 594 acres, that brings this mornings’ total to 100,531 acres for the Beckwourth Complex.

Firefighters continue to focus their efforts on containing increased fire behavior in the northern portion of the Sugar fire.

Around 3 p.m. yesterday afternoon, spot fires began to spread across the west side of Frenchman Boulevard. The gusting, 50 mile per hour winds and extreme fire behavior, such as fire whirls, caused hot embers to be carried even further ahead of the fire to the escarpment, according to California Interagency Incident Management Team 4 System Operation Chief Jake Cagle.

Additional crews were diverted from less active areas of the Sugar Fire to assist in efforts to assist those on the ground in containing the blaze. Crews had already constructed dozer lines in the area, and those are currently being utilized to slow the progression of the fire. Firefighters were able to catch the fire between Evans Drive and Plinco Mine Road, and will continue to work to connect the area with existing dozer lines laid out near Spade Way.

Due to the resurgence in erratic fire behavior, mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for communities in these areas, and residents are strongly urged to visit the Lassen County and Plumas County Sheriff Department’s Facebook pages for more information.

When it comes to the southern edge of the fire, the containment lines from Maddalena east to Scott Road, north to Constantia and the community of Doyle are still holding. There was little to no additional fire progression in that area through the night.

Today’s weather conditions are expected to include winds with gusts up to 30 miles per hour, however, as previously mentioned, the Sugar Fire has been creating its own independent weather patterns and is expected to continue to do so as the day progresses.

Evacuations: Please check your local county’s social media pages for the latest on evacuations in your area and be sure to register for your county’s CodeRed emergency alert system.

• Plumas County: https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/6EB9E0DB3133

• Lassen County: https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/B69B31DD99B6?isMobile=false

• Washoe County: https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/169EBBD0A3AE

Evacuation centers:

• Lassen County Fairgrounds: 195 Russel Ave. Susanville, CA.

• Proctor R. Hug High School: 2880 Sutro St, Reno, NV 89512

• Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center: 1350 N Wells Ave, Reno, NV.

Road Closures: There is a Plumas National Forest closure order in effect surrounding the fire’s perimeter, which includes several roads. Highway 395 is open. Please monitor Caltrans’s District 2 website or Twitter feed for updated highway closure information.

Forest Closure: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/closures/7601/

Air Quality: For further information on smoke conditions and air quality, visit Smoke Forecast Outlooks at wildlandfiresmoke.net.