July 14: Beckwourth Complex Fire now 71 percent contained!
The Beckwourth Complex Fire continues to move in the right direction — containment wise. Last night it was 66 percent and this morning it’s pegged at 71 percent containment.
The complex in total is 95,358 acres, edging closer to the 100,000 mark. The complex is composed of the Dotta Fire, which broke out June 30 after a lightning strike, and the Sugar Fire on July 2, also due to a lightning strike. The Dotta is now 99 percent contained; the Sugar Fire is 94,764 and 71 percent contained. During last night’s briefing Jake Cagle, the system operations chief for the incident command team, said that hopefully the Dotta Fire can be declared 100 percent contained soon.
According to this morning’s briefing, containment operations on the Sugar Fire are the most challenging between Diamond Face and Dixie Lookout, where fire activity and steep terrain make it difficult for crews to engage the fire directly. Fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters are being used to help control the fire until firefighters can safely enter the area. As a precaution, fire crews are working to locate alternative areas to build containment lines in the Spade Road and Ramelli Creek area, where two spot fires were located.
In the Doyle Grade area, firefighters were able to add hose lines to strengthen the combination of handlines, dozer lines and railroad lines which are containing the fire.
From Scott Road, heading northeast to Doyle, as well as from Dixie Look out, south to Maddalena, the fire has had no additional growth. Crews are conducting patrols to continue to search for and eliminate any residual patches of heat along the containment lines.
Tuesday was the last day of the excessive heat warning, but temperatures will remain several degrees above what is normally expected at this time of year. Southwest winds will be a steady 5-10 miles-per-hour, increasing to 10-20 mph, with gusts up to 28 mph in the afternoon.
Evacuations: Mandatory and voluntary evacuations remain in place. Some areas of Lassen County and Plumas County have been downgraded. 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
Road Closures: There is a Plumas National Forest closure order in effect surrounding the fire’s perimeter, which includes several roads. Highways 395 and 70 are open.
