Mendocino Complex makes big acreage run; containment rises
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Mendocino Complex had another aggressive night of burning that resulted in an acreage surge, but firefighters also raised containment on the incident.
The complex reached 110,168 acres and 39 percent containment on Thursday morning, according to Cal Fire. The change in size totaled about 16,000 acres from the previous night.
Burning since Friday, the complex includes the Ranch fire, 74,890 acres and 33-percent contained, and the River fire, 35,278 acres and up to 50 percent containment, Cal Fire said Thursday.
The complex continues to threaten 12,200 structures, and all mandatory evacuations remained in place on Thursday morning, Cal Fire said.
Cal Fire’s Thursday morning damage assessment remained unchanged from the previous night: 38 structures destroyed, which breaks down to 14 homes and 24 other types, and 15 – eight residences and seven other structure types – damaged.
Radio traffic overnight indicated that both fires remained active and challenging for firefighters, with dozers working to cut line to stop their advance.
The Ranch fire continued its push into the Mendocino National Forest and the footprint of the 1996 Fork fire above the Northshore’s communities, burning into heavy stands of timber early Thursday.
The River fire continued to burn around Scotts Valley and Hendricks Road near Lakeport, but the situation appeared less serious than it had been on Tuesday, when that area lost several structures to the fire.
Despite the intense and erratic fire behavior firefighters have encountered on the incident, Cal Fire – now in unified command with the US Forest Service – is estimating that the Mendocino Complex will be fully contained on Aug. 8.
So far, the causes for both fire remain under investigation, Cal Fire said.
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