WILLOW CREEK – The Red Salmon Complex Fire received some moisture in areas of the fire Thursday. 

The northern portion of the fire saw rainfall amounts up to 0.39 inches, while the southern portion, across the East Branch, only saw trace amounts. Temperatures ranged from the lower 60s in the higher elevations, to the mid-70s in the valleys. Relative humidity remained above 45 percent across the entire fire. Burn-out operations were placed on hold as the weather passed over the fire perimeter until conditions improved. The increased moisture is expected to result in a shortened period for firing today. 

Falling and rolling trees have been primarily responsible for some spot fires in the more active divisions. Crews continue monitoring these fires during both the morning and evening operational hours. 

The fire is backing into the confluence of Northimer Creek and China Creek, as well as in the east and west forks of Knownothing Creek. Firefighters have been conducting burn-outs near Salmon River Road. 

The Northwest Incident Management Team 10 will be taking over management of the fire beginning at 6 p.m. today. The fire has been under the direction of the South Central Sierra Interagency Incident Management Team 14 for the past 21 days. The teams have been working together to ensure the transition proceeds as smoothly as possible. 

The following restrictions and warnings remain in effect: a temporary flight restriction is place in the area Northeast of Orleans, along with an evacuation warning for Forks of Salmon. The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests closures have been extended through Sept. 30. This closure may be extended further, depending on fire activity. 

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use. The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor barbeque grills on houseboats. Continuing dry conditions and limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby. Current forest closures are hampering the opening of deer hunting season. 

The U.S. Forest Service has extended the current forest closures for the Six Rivers and Klamath National Forests, until September 30, 2020.  The Shasta-Trinity forest closure has not changed.  Please see the attached Forest Closure pdf files 20-16 and 2017.

WILLOW CREEK – The upcoming weather system still remains a critical component for firing/burn-out operations in the Red Salmon Complex.  With a high-pressure system moving into the area, temperatures will be in the mid-60s to mid-70s. 

There are increasing clouds tonight with a few showers developing after midnight.  Rainfall amounts through sunrise will be light.  Southwest winds will range between 5-10 mph, with some gusts up to 15 mph near the ridgetops. The winds will move smoke to areas northeast of the fire.  Warmer and drier weather is expected to begin on Friday.  

Burn-out operations are utilizing Unmanned Aerial Systems (drones) to assist crews with ignition efforts in the Knownothing Creek and adjacent drainage area. To date, mop up operations along the ridge between Horn Creek and Knownothing Creek are 95% complete. The drones are able to access lower drainage expanses in steep and rugged terrain. Structural defense work will continue and crews are fully engaged in all active fire areas. 

The southeast area of the fire near Grizzly Camp over to Lone Pine Ridge has been prepped for firing operations when weather conditions improve. The fire continues to be active in both the northeast and the southwest. Other areas of the fire continue to have low intensity burning. 

The following restrictions and warnings remain in effect: a temporary flight restriction is place in the area Northeast of Orleans, along with an evacuation warning for Forks of Salmon. The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain closed. 

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use. The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor barbeque grills on houseboats. Continuing dry conditions and very limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby.  Current forest closures are hampering the opening of deer hunting season, and continue to impact the livelihood of area communities. 

WILLOW CREEK – The next few days will be critical operational periods for firing/burn-out operations in the Red Salmon Complex. To increase containment of active fire areas, firefighters will be focusing on two key areas: northeast towards Forks of Salmon and southwest towards Horse Linto Creek.

A high-pressure system is expected to move into the area on Friday. Temperatures will range from the mid-60s to the mid-70s. Relative humidity will fall into the 30s and 40s in the afternoon. Light rain is expected after midnight tonight.

Crews are nearing completion of burning operations to strengthen the containment line to the Salmon River Road.

Overall fire growth has diminished. In the southwest division the goal is to reach the dozer line near Tish Tang Ridge. There were three spot fires in the area ranging from one-quarter to three acres in size, which were contained.

Additional resources have been shifted to assist the three eastern divisions near Horse Mountain and Election Gap, Election Gap to Bake Oven Ridge, and Knownothing Creek to Hotelling Ridge. These crews will also conduct structure protection operations. Firefighters continue to stay fully engaged on all staffed divisions.

Smoke in the Hoopa Valley later this morning will be receding later in the afternoon.

The following restrictions and warnings remain in effect: a temporary flight restriction is place in the area Northeast of Orleans, along with an evacuation warning for Forks of Salmon. The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain closed.

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use. The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor barbeque grills on houseboats. Continuing dry conditions and very limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby.

The U.S. Forest Service has extended current forest closures until September 24, 2020 for the Six Rivers and the Klamath National Forests. The Trinity-Shasta forest closure has not changed.  Please see the attached PDF files of closure orders 20-14 and 20-15.

WILLOW CREEK – Firefighters continue to take advantage of favorable weather in order to secure active areas of the Red Salmon Complex fire. Firefighters are using a combined strategy of firing/burn-out operations and containment line construction to control the advancement of the fire. 

“We had some rain last Friday, which has slowed down our operational tempo,” Mike Strawhun, incident manager said. “It slowed us down and gave us the opportunity to engage the fire with handlines and dozers.

Firefighters are looking for opportunities to hinder the fire’s movement in the Nordheimer Drainage toward the Salmon River Road and McNeal Creek. Crews conducted successful burn-out operations in the area Southeast of Forks of Salmon, West of Knownothing Creek and North of Blackberry Creek. Crews are also providing protection for structures from the Forks of Salmon, east to Hotelling Ridge. Two engine crews have been monitoring the spot fire near Methodist Creek. Initial reports indicate that there has been little-to-no movement, and low intensity burning in this area. Three engines have been patrolling, building containment lines, and mopping up a second spot fire, adjacent to the Hoopa Valley Reservation. Patrols will continue into the evening. Additionally, crews are conducting burn-out operations along Lone Pine Ridge, above Horse Linto Creek, to restrict potential southern spread of the fire. Operations on all areas of the fire are continuing throughout the night. 

Weather conditions are expected to remain warm and dry with patchy smoke and temperatures in the upper 60s and 70s. While some temperatures may reach the 80s in the valleys.  

The following restrictions and warnings remain in effect: a temporary flight restriction is in place in the area Northeast of Orleans, along with an evacuation warning for Forks of Salmon. The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain closed. 
 

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use.  The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor barbeque grills on houseboats. Continuing dry conditions and very limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby. 

Current Situation: “The word of the day is focus,” said Incident Commander Mike Strawhun.  “Today is day 56 of this fire and crews have been working very hard to construct control lines and find the right weather conditions to conduct firing operations.” 

The southwest section of the fire continues to be active. Crews plan to use tactical burning operations along Tish Tang Ridge and Lone Pine Ridge to continue to help secure the southwest corner of the complex.

In the northeast of the complex, burnout operations helped deepen line northwest of Knownothing Creek. Operations will continue to bring the fire down to the Salmon River Road. Some road improvement work was completed along Methodist Creek Road. Crews also monitored a spot fire in Methodist Creek, which showed minimal activity overnight.

Clearer air over the past several days have allowed air resources to assist ground crews.  Helicopters are conducting bucket drops of water on key hot spots and have begun to remove unneeded equipment in the fire area. 

Hose lays, pumps, and other structure protection remain in Denny and Forks of Salmon.

Weather: An upper level disturbance approaches later on Monday with some clouds at times. Temperatures should range from the upper 60s to mid 80s and lows from the 40s to mid 50s with relative humidity in the 25 to 40 percent range.  Winds will be north to westerly around 10-15 mph.

Air Quality: Areas south and east of the fire will see an increase in smoke.

Area Evacuations: An Evacuation Warning remains in effect for Forks of Salmon. 

National Forest Closure Areas: The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain fully closed. Entry is not permitted.

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use.  The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor grills. Continuing dry conditions and very limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby.

Current Situation: Rain across all divisions of the Red Salmon Complex helped to keep fire activity low Friday and overnight. The precipitation and humidity limited tactical firing operations, though line construction and improvement continued.

A warmer dryer day should permit burnout operations that continue securing the southwest corner of the complex. That includes adding depth to containment line along Tish Tang Ridge and working west and east from a drop point along Lone Pine Ridge.

Structure protection, engines, and personnel remain in Denny and Forks of Salmon. Many more isolated structures have also been addressed. Crews in the northeast corner of the complex will continue defensive firing to keep the fire from the Salmon River and Hwy 93.

Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain fully closed. Entry is not permitted. Shasta-Trinity National Forest has partially reopened, though an area closure for the Red Salmon Complex is in effect. Visit the Shasta-Trinity website for details (www.fs.usda.gov/STNF or search “Shasta-Trinity”).

Weather: An upper level ridge will move across the area this weekend, leading to a warming and drying trend. Terrain driven winds are anticipated at the lower elevations.

Air Quality: Most of the area will see improvement in smoke levels and air quality. Hoopa Valley Reservation and the coast should have good air quality. Some residual smoke could linger in areas north and east and areas closest to the fire could still experience smoke from burning and smoldering fuels.

Area Evacuations: The Siskiyou County Sheriff has reduced the evacuation status for Forks of Salmon to an Evacuation Warning. Residents may return to their homes.

Effective at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 19, the USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region is allowing access to some National Forests in California (see news release PDF below).

The Klamath National Forest and Six Rivers National Forest are two forests affected by the Red Salmon Complex that remain entirely closed.

The Shasta-Trinity National Forest has partially reopened; however, portions of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest near the Red Salmon Complex remain closed under Closure Order No. 14-20-11. See the PDFs below for a map of the closed area and a complete list of closed trails and roads on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

All ignition sources (e.g., campfires, gas stoves, grills) continue to be prohibited on all National Forest System lands throughout California.

Current Situation: Recent light rain on Friday helped crews to make progress and secure additional containment lines.  However, drier conditions and increased temperatures this weekend have brought active fire behavior back to the east and southwest flanks of the fire.  Burnout operations will continue to help secure the southwest corner of the complex along Tish Tang Ridge and working west and east from a drop point along Lone Pine Ridge. Firefighters working to complete control lines are using these firing operations to increase depth along these lines.

Clearer air over the past several days has allowed air resources to assist ground crews. Helicopters are conducting bucket drops of water on key hot spots and have begun to remove unneeded equipment in the fire area. 

Firefighters and equipment remain in Denny and Forks of Salmon completing structure protection. Many more isolated structures have also been addressed in the possibility of fire moving in that direction.  Crews in the northeast corner of the complex will continue defensive firing to keep the fire from the Salmon River and Hwy 93.   
 

Weather: A warming and drying trend is anticipated on Sunday and Monday as high pressure builds into the area.  Temperatures should moderate into the mid 70’s and low 80’s with relative humidity dropping to 25 to 40 percent range. 
 

Air Quality: Smoke from the Red Salmon Complex will combine with smoke from other fires in the area which could keep some areas in the Unhealthy range, depending on proximity to the fires.
 

Area Evacuations: An Evacuation Warning remains in effect for Forks of Salmon. 
 

 National Forest Closure Areas: The Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests remain fully closed. Entry is not permitted.

Some Shasta-Trinity National Forest lands east of the Red Salmon Fire Complex closure area are open for public use.  The use of any ignition source on National Forest System lands is strictly prohibited, including campfires, gas stoves, smoking and outdoor barbeque grills on houseboats. Continuing dry conditions and very limited firefighting resources require visitors to remain vigilant and be prepared to evacuate if a fire starts nearby.