PHOTO GALLERY: West Valley City firefighters battling Dixie Fire in California Some of Utah's firefighters currently in California have shared a behind-the-scenes look as they work to contain the massive Dixie Fire in northern California. “Our main goal at this point is to not let another Greenville happen.PLUMAS COUNTY, Calif. “We are focused on protecting every community that is being affected, or has the potential to be affected, by the fire,” he said. With several more weeks of firefighting likely to come, Zuniga said, the priority on the Dixie fire remains defending lives and homes. “Sometimes it can be mentally draining, because you’re out there for so long and it just becomes like Groundhog Day,” said Zuniga, who also helped battle the 2018 Mendocino Complex fire, which had been the state’s second-largest fire until the Dixie fire claimed the title. Yet the Dixie fire, which merged with the smaller Fly fire in July, remains unlike anything officials have seen. The largest stand-alone fire in the state is the Creek fire, which also ignited in 2020 and burned about 380,000 acres without ever merging with another fire, Cal Fire officials said. The largest wildfire in California history is last year’s August Complex fire, which was composed of nearly 40 fires that ultimately grew to more than 1 million acres. Officials say a perfect storm of conditions - the heat, the dry fuels, the drought, the wind, the slope - has driven the Dixie fire’s rapid spread. The Trinity County Sheriff’s Office issued new evacuation orders for the community of Burnt Ranch on Monday morning.Ĭalifornia Firefighters face unprecedented conditions as they try to save towns from Dixie fire

Forest Service said.Įvacuation orders for that fire have been issued in portions of Junction City, Red Hill, Canyon Creek, Coopers Bar, Big Bar, Del Loma, Big Flat, Helena and Cedar Flat. One blaze, the lightning-sparked Monument fire in Shasta-Trinity National Forest, grew to 53,019 acres and was 3% contained Monday, the U.S. The Dixie fire is one of 11 major fires burning across the state, according to Cal Fire. The Lassen County Sheriff’s Office on Sunday issued new evacuation warnings for portions of the Janesville area. The Dixie fire, now the second-largest blaze in state history, has burned more than 463,000 acres and destroyed more than 400 buildings.Įvacuation orders and warnings spurred by the Dixie fire remained in effect Monday across swaths of Plumas, Butte, Tehama and Lassen counties. And the warming trend expected later in the week will add to challenging conditions, he said.Ĭalifornia Dixie fire, now the second-largest in California history, has burned more than 400 structures If the fire activity flares up as expected Monday, he said, crews could see 200-foot flame lengths that force them to retreat. “It sort of held a cap that blocked some of the sunlight.” “It was actually helpful,” he said of the thick smoke. Exhausted crews are being swapped out for new ones.Īnd although the thick layer of smoke hovering over the fire is expected to dissipate Monday, McKeague said clearer skies actually expose the fire to more dangerous heat from the sun, which could lead to increased fire activity. More than 5,800 firefighters are working around the clock to battle the Dixie fire, said Dan McKeague, an incident spokesman with the U.S. Last month was the hottest July on record in four Western states, including California, according to the National Weather Service. “And as a consequence, we need to acknowledge, just straight up, these are climate-induced wildfires.” are leading to extreme conditions and wildfire challenges the likes of which we’ve never seen in our history,” Newsom said. Gavin Newsom said it took only about 90 minutes for the conflagration to rip through the community of Greenville, reducing most of the small town to ash and rubble. Experts have said that dry vegetation leads to more intense fires that move faster and are harder to fight.ĭuring a visit to the Dixie fire burn zone Sunday, Gov. More than 16,000 structures remain threatened by the blaze, Cal Fire officials said. The destruction by the Dixie fire of a large swath of the Gold Rush town of Greenville left residents stunned and mourning all that has been lost. California ‘We’ve lost everything’: Survivors reeling as downtown Greenville leveled by Dixie fire

Dixie fire update containment