Loyalton Fire

The fire was started by lightning strikes northeast of Loyalton along the eastern edge of the Sierra Valley, near Mount Ina Coolbrith on the Tahoe National Forest. Smoke was first reported from the Smith Peak lookout in Plumas National Forest at 4:30 pm on Friday, August 14. The fire was burning in a mix of timber, sagebrush and tall grass. By the morning of August 15, it had grown to 2,300 acres (930 ha) and was spreading extremely quickly with no containment. Around 2:35 PM PDT, high winds and thunderstorm activity spawned a "fire tornado" at a strength of EF-1 or EF-2, with winds gusting to at least 110 miles per hour (180 km/h). The National Weather Service issued its first-ever fire tornado warning, for southeastern Lassen County, in response to the incident.[2][3]

By the morning of August 16, the fire had expanded to 20,000 acres (8,100 ha). Evacuation orders were issued for areas in Lassen County south of SR 70 and west of U.S. Highway 395. SR 70 was closed between SR 49 and US 395 as fire crews worked to prevent the fire from spreading north of Beckwourth Pass. The fire briefly jumped north of SR 70 and east of US 395 but was quickly stopped in those directions.[4] By the evening of August 16, helped by strong winds, the fire had burned 29,828 acres (12,071 ha). Evacuation orders were expanded to Balls Canyon Road, Long Valley Road, Bordertown, Copperfield, and Cold Springs as the fire spread east into Nevada and the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. About 580 firefighters, 42 engines and 6 aircraft were on the scene.[5]

Crews had made progress on the southeast flank of the fire on August 17, and mandatory evacuations were lifted for Cold Springs. Highway 70 was reopened.[6] The Dog Valley and Long Valley areas of the Carson Ranger District on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest were closed to recreational access.[7] By evening, advisory evacuation orders were in place for Loyalton, Chilcoot, Vinton, and Sierra Brooks. Lightning strikes started several new fires to the south around 7:30 pm, but rain after midnight helped slow fire activity.[8] As of August 17, five homes and six other structures had been destroyed.[9]

On August 18, the fire had been largely contained on the north and east, and mandatory evacuations were lifted in Lassen County. However, it continued spreading rapidly to the south and west, largely due to the lightning strikes there the previous day.[10][11] The fire grew to 43,444 acres (17,581 ha) and was 10 percent contained.[12]

High winds continued throughout August 19, but crews had managed to slow the fire spread considerably. Evacuation advisories were lifted for Cold Springs and Bordertown.[13] By the evening, evacuation advisories were also lifted for Chilcoot, Vinton and Loyalton, although evacuation orders remained in place for Balls Canyon Road, Long Valley Road, and Copperfield, and evacuation advisory for Sierra Brooks.[14]

On the morning of August 20, evacuation advisories were lifted for Sierra Brooks and Copperfield.[15] As of 5:44 pm on August 20, the fire had burned 46,582 acres (18,851 ha) and was 60 percent contained. Air quality continued to be extremely poor in Sierra Valley and Reno, with visibility highly impaired by smoke.

On the morning of August 21, evacuation orders remained in place for Balls Canyon Road and Long Valley Road.[16] The fire had burned 46,872 acres (18,968 ha) and remained at 60 percent containment.[17]

At 6:30 am on August 22, the fire was at 47,029 acres (19,032 ha) and was 75 percent contained. Wind activity decreased significantly over the weekend helping fire crews to expand containment. A total of six homes and 29 other structures were reported destroyed. All evacuation orders were lifted as of this time, though the Dog Valley area of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest remained closed.[18]

On September 14, the fire became 100% contained. It burned 47,029 acres (19,032 ha) and destroyed at least 35 structures.