Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020       Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 96% 

Engines: 13     Handcrews: 6     Dozers: 11    Helicopters: 2   Water Tenders: 19   Total Personnel: 399 

Fatalities: 15  Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455 

Current Conditions: Suppression repair continues in the North Complex Fire area as firefighters work to restore damage the forest sustained during suppression efforts. Containment continues to hold at 96% and firefighters continue to monitor for smokes and flare-ups that have been reported within the interior perimeter of the burn. USFS Resource Advisors (READs) are working with firefighters to ensure that sensitive habitats, cultural resources and potential hazards are handled with care during suppression repair. The focus of today’s suppression repair work will be in the southeastern boarder of the fire line.  

The Red Flag warning is still in effect through Tuesday at 1PM. Today’s winds are not expected to cause any additional challenges to fire containment lines and are expected to gradually subside over the course of the day. Fuels in the fire area will be very dry and firefighters advise residents to use caution and avoid activities that may cause the production of sparks in an effort to prevent a new fire start. 

Only a portion of the Plumas National Forest is closed due to the fire. Four fifths of the Forest is open for recreation. In the areas of Forest closures, Forest Service roads and campgrounds are closed.  Burned trees, smoldering stump holes, heavy equipment being moved around the fire area are some of the immediate public safety issues in the closed burn area.  Longer term hazards include landslides and flash flooding caused by erosion or suppression activities not yet repaired in the closure area can lead to serious injury or death without warning.   Law enforcement will be patrolling the area. Please use caution as fire personnel continue working in the area. Drive carefully and watch for fire equipment. Watch your speed and also be aware of the logging trucks around La Porte Road. 

Plumas National Forest Closure: 

There is a Plumas National Forest closure in effect for the fire perimeter and surrounding areas; please check https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/plumas/alerts-notices  

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 96%         

Engines: 13     Handcrews: 6     Dozers: 12    Helicopters: 2   Water Tenders: 19   Total Personnel: 399

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: The containment on the North Complex Fire is now 96% and suppression repair progress continues.  The repair priorities are infrastructure, natural resources and watershed areas.  Resource Advisors (READs) are embedded with the operations group so that sensitive habitats, cultural resources and hazards such as buried cables are avoided.  Many of the fire lines built on the west side of the fire perimeter have now been repaired.  Repairs are close to completion on the north and east side of Buck’s Lake.  Some of the heavy equipment – dozers, masticators, excavators and skidders is being moved to the northeast perimeter of the fire to work on priorities in these areas.

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%         

Engines: 15     Handcrews: 8     Dozers: 12    Helicopters: 2   Water Tenders: 20   
Total Personnel: 470

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: Suppression repair continues in the North Complex Fire area.  Firefighters are working to complete suppression repair in the Penstocks area so that PGE can get in and begin repairs to electrical infrastructure.  Work continues near Buck’s Lake.  There was a flare-up well interior of the fire perimeter but it did not threaten the fire-line.  Additional internal smokes were reported on the northeast side all well within the fire perimeter.  Red Flag conditions will continue to promote fire spread within the interior pockets of available fuel.  Needle cast and areas of low severity burn continue to burn. Patrolling, monitoring and mop up continues south of Little Grass Valley.

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%         

Engines: 15     Handcrews: 8     Dozers: 12    Helicopters: 1    Water Tenders: 20   Total Personnel: 470

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: The main work on the large area continues to be suppression repair.  Handlines, dozer lines, damaged roads and areas cleared for safety zones or staging areas are being repaired.  Work is continuing in the Buck’s Lake area, the Penstocks, in the northeast corner of the fire perimeter and around Little Grass Valley.  One group is spiked out in the Grass Valley area.  Good progress is being made but there is plenty of work still to do.

While fighting this fire, numerous contingency lines were constructed to stop the spread.  Fortunately the fire was stopped and the fire perimeter lines are now well established; the fire is close to containment.  Many of the contingency lines – dozer and handlines - are outside of the fire perimeter.  The Forest Closure area currently includes the unburned areas with these contingency lines.  As the damage from fighting the fire is repaired, Plumas National Forest leadership will be re-assessing the Closure order, especially in these unburned areas and will adjust the Forest Closure in the future.

The Red Flag Warning remains in effect through today at 5pm. During this time we are expecting winds north to east at 10-20 mph, gusting to 45 mph. Humidity will be in the 10-20% range with highs touching 70 degrees. Air quality is expected to remain Good.

Only a portion of the Plumas National Forest is closed. Two thirds of the Forest is open for recreation. In the areas of Forest closures, Forest Service roads and campgrounds are closed.  Burned trees, smoldering stump holes, heavy equipment being moved around the fire area are some of the immediate public safety issues in the closed burn area.  Longer term hazards include landslides and flash flooding caused by erosion or suppression activities not yet repaired in the closure area can lead to serious injury or death without warning.   Law enforcement will be patrolling the area. Please use caution as fire personnel continue working in the area. Drive carefully and watch for fire equipment. Watch your speed and also be aware of the logging trucks around La Porte Road.

Plumas National Forest Closure:

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%         

Engines: 16     Handcrews: 12     Dozers: 13    Helicopters: 3    Water Tenders: 20   Total Personnel: 580

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: Progress continues today with suppression repair work in the areas of the most critical need. Today those areas are the Penstocks, south of Buck’s Lake, the northeast portion of the burn area and Little Grass Valley. Cultural sites and sensitive habitats inside the burn area will require significantly more time and resources to address. Teams of fire fighters have been organized into 4 groups and they add or subtract equipment based on the needs of their geographical assignment. Resources can change each day to be as efficient as possible in the suppression repair work being done.  This suppression repair work is extremely important for the Feather River watershed to prevent sedimentation and preserve the water quality of Lake Oroville, a major source of drinking water for many Californians.

Cal Fire is continuing similar suppression repair work in the southern part of the burn area. Work in this area should be completed in the coming weeks.

The Red Flag Warning remains in effect until Friday at 5pm. During this time we are expecting winds north to east at 10-20 mph, gusting to 45 mph. Humidity will be in the 10-20% range with highs touching 70 degrees. Air quality is expected to remain Good.

Only a portion of the Plumas National Forest is closed. Two thirds of the Forest is open for recreation. In the areas of Forest closures, Forest Service roads and campgrounds are closed.  Burned trees, smoldering stump holes, heavy equipment being moved around the fire area are some of the immediate public safety issues in the closed burn area.  Longer term hazards include landslides and flash flooding caused by erosion or suppression activities not yet repaired in the closure area can lead to serious injury or death without warning.   Law enforcement will be patrolling the area. Please use caution as fire personnel continue working in the area. Drive carefully and watch for fire equipment. Watch your speed and also be aware of logging trucks around La Porte Road.

Plumas National Forest Closure:

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%         

Engines: 16     Handcrews: 13     Dozers: 14    Helicopters: 3    Water Tenders: 30   Total Personnel: 602

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: Yesterday crews made good progress completing suppression repair at the northern and northwestern portions of the fire perimeter.  Although there is still opportunity for active burning, most of it is well within the interior of the fire area.

Due to the safety risks inherent in and around the fire perimeter, portions of the Plumas National Forest will remain closed for some time.  PGE has major repair work to do on electrical infrastructure, active logging is occurring on private land to harvest burned trees while they still have value as timber (many more logging trucks on roads) and portions of the Forest road system have been heavily damaged and require repair. Getting the right expertise here to address these problems takes time and finishing this work takes time. In addition, there is landslide potential in many areas and many hazard trees along roads and in recreation areas.  Some of this cannot be mitigated and portions of the fire area will remain closed until a substantial portion of the risk has passed.  This was a very large, damaging fire affecting a third of the Plumas National Forest.  The Forest Closure in and surrounding the fire area means that this area is closed to hunting, camping, hiking and fishing for this season and the next year. 

The Red Flag warning issued on Monday night will continue through Friday. Conditions remain very dry for this time of year.  Wind and humidity are expected to be mild today with highs reaching the 70’s, allowing for good weather while crews continue to make progress on suppression repair.

While smoke and haze has increased slightly over the weekend, air quality remains in the Good category.

Plumas National Forest Closure:

 Special Statement   
 
Red Flag Warning through Wednesday morning. Fire Weather
Watch Wednesday evening through Friday afternoon.
 
Fire   
The North Complex fire is holding at 318,930 aces and is 95%
contained. Winds will switch from southwest to northeast
today as a series of fronts begin to move through. The
strongest winds are expected this morning followed by a brief
lull and then redevelop tonight. Fire activity has increased a bit
in the interior as isolated pockets of fuel continue to move
through surface fuels. Needle and leaf cast continue to add to
these surface fuels. Hot spots located in the upper portion of
the Middle Fork of the Feather River will generate smoke that
will likely be pushed southerly across the southern boundary of
the fire, toward Challenge and potentially Grass Valley.
 
Smoke   
Air quality for all communities across the Outlook Area is Good
this morning. Air quality in Quincy and Portola may see
Moderate air quality briefly this afternoon while southwest
winds prevail, then moving into Good as the northeasterly
winds push smoke out of the area. Oroville and Challenge will
likely bounce in and out of Moderate as smoke begins to move
southwesterly, settling in Moderate in the early evening hours
before winds pick up again overnight. Lingering smoke will be
seen as haze. Air quality throughout the rest of the Outlook
Area should remain Good. If necessary, an updated Daily
Smoke Outlook will be issued to address any substantial
changes in air quality as a result of the anticipated wind shifts.
 
Health and Safety   
Air quality changes throughout the day. Use common sense. If
you smell smoke, you're breathing smoke. Take precautions as
described below, especially if you are sensitive. 
you smell smoke, you're breathing smoke. Take precautions as

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%  

Engines: 19     Handcrews: 14     Dozers: 30    Helicopters: 3    Water Tenders: 50   Total Personnel: 705

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: Yesterday fire crews made good progress toward suppression repair. Crews have finished suppression repair on the western areas (along the Oro Quincy highway) of the work zone and focus is shifting to other areas. Dozers are being used to recontour firelines, hand crews are pulling brush back over exposed soils, and chippers are mulching cut vegetation into chips that are spread over disturbed soils to minimize erosion. Incident leadership is hopeful that much of this work will can be completed so that care of the fire area can be returned to the Plumas National Forest.

In addition to the Fire Weather Watch issued on Sunday, a Red Flag Warning has now been issued for our area effective last night at 11pm extending through tomorrow morning at 8am. Winds are expected north to east at 10 to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph. Stronger winds are possible Wednesday night through Friday afternoon, with north to east winds 15 to 25 mph gusting to 40 mph. Locally stronger gusts are possible over ridges and through favored gaps and canyons during the night and morning hours. Humidity is expected between 12 to 20 percent with warm weather.

While smoke and haze has increased slightly over the weekend, air quality remains in the Good category.

Forest closures are still in effect and hazardous conditions remain in the burn area. We please ask that the public stay out of forest closure areas and off of Forest Service roads, as interference with fire suppression could delay or impede firefighting efforts. Law enforcement will be patrolling the area. Please use caution as fire personnel continue working in the area. Drive carefully and watch for fire equipment. Watch your speed and also be aware of logging trucks around La Porte Road.

Plumas National Forest Closure:

There is a Plumas National Forest closure in effect for the fire perimeter and surrounding areas; please check the Plumas National Forest webpage, below, under “Alerts & Notices” for details.  Forest campgrounds and Forest roads within this area are closed. 

Smoke Outlook: fires.airfire.org/outlooks/EasternSierra or www.airnow.gov/
Plumas National Forest closures: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/plumas/alerts-notices

California Interagency Incident Management Team 11 is implementing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in both the fire area and surrounding communities.

Fire   
After four days of red flag conditions, the North Complex fire
finally put up some visible smoke. Southwest winds fanned a
hot spot or two in the upper Middle Fork of the Feather River
drainage yesterday afternoon. Smoke was noticeable as haze
in Quincy. Today’s weather will see another round of
southwest winds, a bit lower temperatures, higher humidity,
and wind gusts less than what was had yesterday. Fire
behavior is expected to be similar to what was observed
yesterday. Hot spots persist throughout the fire footprint, and
there remains potential for increased fire activity in isolated
pockets as fuels continue to dry.
 
Smoke  
Air quality is registering Moderate in Quincy, Portola, Oroville,
and Challenge this morning. Air quality should improve to
Good by mid-late morning as the inversions lift, but smoke will
still be evident as haze. Southwest winds will return around
noon. Smoke will again be carried toward Quincy and Portola,
where air quality may return to Moderate this afternoon
depending on fie activity. Smoke will begin to settle down
canyon and into low lying areas after sundown. Quincy and
Portola should expect smoke to remain in the area at least
until the winds shift to the northeast later this evening, and air
quality should move back to Good. Air quality in Oroville and
Challenge can be expected to move into Moderate as smoke is
pushed back down canyon.
 
Health and Safety  
Air quality changes throughout the day. Use common sense. If
you smell smoke, you're breathing smoke. Take precautions as
described below, especially if you are sensitive.

Incident Start Date: 8/17/2020                 Size: 318,930 acres      Containment: 95%  

Engines: 24     Handcrews: 14     Dozers: 30    Helicopters: 3    Water Tenders: 51   Total Personnel: 770

Fatalities: 15   Structures Damaged/Destroyed: 2,455

Current Conditions: Yesterday fire crews continued progress toward extinguishing and containing the fire. Heavy equipment, such as excavators, chippers and dozers are being used to remove dozer line berms, build water bars, and in other suppression repair tasks. Branch and Division personnel are directing suppression repair progress and they continue to prioritize items and areas for completion.

A Fire Weather Watch has been issued beginning tonight at 11pm lasting through Wednesday morning.  With this we can expect north to east winds 10 to 20 mph with gusts to 30 mph and humidity at or below 20%. Incident leadership is confident that enough resources are available to hold containment through this wind event. This latest wind event is not expected to be as strong as last week’s Red Flag warning.

While smoke and haze has increased slightly over the weekend, air quality remains in the Good category.

Forest closures are still in effect and hazardous conditions remain in the burn area. We please ask that the public stay out of forest closure areas and off of Forest Service roads, as interference with fire suppression could delay or impede firefighting efforts. Law enforcement will be patrolling the area. Please use caution as fire personnel continue working in the area. Drive carefully and watch for fire equipment. Watch your speed and also be aware of logging trucks around La Porte Road.

Operational briefings will be reduced to every other day and will be posted to the Plumas National Forest Facebook Page, www.facebook.com/USFSPlumas Team Planning meetings (tomorrow at 5 p.m.) and will be available to watch via Zoom https://usfs.zoomgov.com/j/1602646317).

Evacuations and Road Closures

All evacuation warnings and orders have been lifted.  There is a Plumas National Forest closure in effect for the fire perimeter and surrounding areas; please check the Plumas National Forest webpage, below, under “Alerts & Notices” for details.  Forest campgrounds and Forest roads within this area are closed. 

Please check local County Sheriff’s websites and Facebook pages for the latest updates and information. You can also sign up with your county for reverse 911 notifications by registering with the CODE RED system.

Smoke Outlook: fires.airfire.org/outlooks/EasternSierra or www.airnow.gov/
Plumas National Forest closures: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/plumas/alerts-notices

California Interagency Incident Management Team 11 is implementing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in both the fire area and surrounding communities.