Firefighter working the Fork Complex. Photo: USFS.

[For LoCO’s chronological list of fire updates, go here.]

The fires that burn to our south and east continue to burn largely unchecked, closing roads, choking the air with smoke and charring acreage. Over in Trinity County, the sheriff’s office is evacuating entire communities. Resources are stretched thin across the region — not only because of the way that lightning sowed fire across a long and broad swath of territory, but because agencies are simultaneously battling megafires across the western United States, including the Rocky megafire in Lake County, now at 68,300 acres.

Local firefighters are getting no relief from the weather. A high pressure system hangs over much of the interior this morning — and with it, hotter, dryer air — but the low pressure system that is expected to move in soon might not be much better, as it brings with it a chance of thunderstorms and thus additional lightning strikes, the very thing that sparked the current fires almost a week ago.

MAD RIVER COMPLEX

The group of fires around Ruth Lake and the town of Mad River stand at over 14,000 acres as of this morning, and are only 8 percent contained. The complex is being managed by California Interagency Incident Command Team #5, and has 673 personnel assigned.

The prognosis for today is not great. “The warmer and drier conditions will increase the potential for rapid fire spread,” incident commanders write. “The high pressure will also trap and hold the smoke in the canyons.”

They’re currently estimating that the complex won’t be fully contained until Aug. 31, though one feels that there is a lot of wiggle room in that date. A lot can happen in three and a half weeks.

Follow the latest news from the Mad River Complex on the U.S. Forest Service’s “InciWeb” system.

RIVER COMPLEX

The fires east of Willow Creek have consumed over 8,500 acres as of this morning. California Interagency Incident Command Team #3 is in charge of the fire, and 388 personnel are working the fires. They’re posted up at Camp Kimtu in Willow Creek.

There are several mandatory evacuation orders in effect in the complex. From the Trinity County Sheriff’s Office:

At the request of California Interagency Management Team 3, the Trinity County Sheriff’s Department is initiating a mandatory evacuation of the Denny, Dailey, Hoboken and Bell Flat areas due to increased fire activity and limited resources to provide structure protection. A hard road closure is in effect on Denny Road at the junction of Forest Road 7N26 at Onion Saddle.

Denny Road is passable but use caution due to falling fire debris and rocks.

There will be a community meeting o discuss the fires and the attack upon them in Trinity Village this evening at 6 p.m. That’s at the Trinity Village Fire Hall.

There is a community meeting today, August 5, at 6:00 p.m. at the Trinity Village Fire Hall.

Follow the River Complex on InciWeb.

SOUTH COMPLEX

Over 12,000 acres have now burned around Hyampom and the South Fork of the Trinity, south of Highway 299. A total of 31 people are assigned to the fire.

A number of backwoods communties are being evacuated, and a number of backwoods roads have been closed. See here for a full list. There are community meetings scheduled today at 2 p.m. in Hyampom and tomorrow at 4 p.m. in Burnt Ranch. See here for details.

Follow the South Complex on InciWeb.

FORK COMPLEX

The fires around Hayfork have burned over 11,000 acres and have prompted evacuations in a number of neighborhoods, including Trinity Pines.

Follow the Fork Complex on InciWeb.

ROUTE COMPLEX

This is a new complex, but they are not new fires. Several fires have been peeled off from the Fork Complex (to the east) and the Mad River Complex (to the west) to be placed under a new incident management structure

Follow the Route Complex on InciWeb.