More new fires in California. . .

[Colliemom]

Anne, if you love geological formations, you would love Michigan’s Pictured Rocks National Shore, the north shore along Lake Superior and the Keweenaw Peni sula. Tbe terrain is rugged, Tbe are combinations rock formations that are found no where else in the world together like that and volcanic uplifts and beaches. Do some research on Michigan’s UP especially the areas ai told you about. If you were e er here to see it and explore, you may ne er want to leave. I can’t take credit for these pictures, I shared the link so you could see the beauty of the Pictured Rocks.


https://www.facebook.com/groups/1354390 ... 659853703/


As to moving to different places, like Velda said we all make our choices. I will never leave Michigan as I love my home state. It’s terrain as well as it’s climate vary widely. I don’t have to deal with wildfires, tornadoes, floods etc. they can occur in the state, but not big time stuff. They say here, if you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes and it will change. Those big Great Lakes heavily influence our weather. They change the dynamics of weather fronts and make forecasting extremely tricky. Climate change is also changing our weather too. So we all find our niche. As the saying goes, “Bloom Where You Are Planted”.

[Cudedog]

As of this morning, August 6, 2021, the Dixie Fire has increased to 432,813 acres, surpassing the Bootleg Fire ( Bootleg still currently burning in southern Oregon, at 413,545 acres).

Again, as of this morning, the Dixie Fire has now increased in size to become the 3rd largest fire ever to burn in the modern history of California. It ignited on July 13, the East Zone of the fire increased in size overnight by 71,000 acres.

The Dixie Fire is still only 35% contained, and is currently the largest wildfire burning in the United States.

The Dixie Fire continues to actively burn at this hour, 12:50 p.m., 8/6/2021, with the possibility of afternoon south-west winds today gusting in the fire area up to 25 mph.

Firefighters protecting a Greenville home


The town of Greenville, showing the fire approaching (Greenville subsequently burned).


Anne

[Cudedog]

Anne, if you love geological formations, you would love Michigan’s Pictured Rocks National Shore, the north shore along Lake Superior and the Keweenaw Peni sula. Tbe terrain is rugged, Tbe are combinations rock formations that are found no where else in the world together like that and volcanic uplifts and beaches. Do some research on Michigan’s UP especially the areas ai told you about.


https://www.facebook.com/groups/1354390 ... 659853703/

Wow. Sue. Thanks!

I had no idea! Thanks for the link!

Sorry, I mis-spoke. OF COURSE Michagan "has geology". Every place does, of course, just geology of various different kinds.

I think what I would miss most about the west are the volcanoes. If I wanted to (and if the currently fire-closed roads were open) I could get up off the couch, right now, get in my van and drive to the nearest active volcano - and arrive there in about 1 1/2 or 2 hours.

If I wanted to drive a bit further, I could reach MANY volcanoes (both active and dormant - dormant meaning potentially active, just not active right now) within an easy day's drive.

But. . . I am beginning to think I might give it all up if I could just find a place where I could do something as simple as go for a long walk on a cool morning.

Thanks again!

Anne

[Bethers]

My favorite place I've lived was along the Mississippi in Wisconsin. Bluffs behind me and across the river from me. Eagles year round I could watch from my living room window. But as much as I loved it, I don't want to go back to shoveling snow, etc. I just want to visit winter. My intentions when I went full-time was to find the "perfect" place for when I eventually would settle in my final place. I'm still looking. My place in Arizona is great spring and fall and ok for winter, but I really don't want the extreme heat of the summers. And so far I'm not ready to spend that much time there. It was great to have for last winter when I was hibernating, though. With my plans that I hope I can go through with, I'll stop there for a couple/few days the end of December then may not get back for a year or more. So I totally understand not knowing where or if to move.

[Cudedog]

Update 4:56 p.m., 8/6/21

"Dixie Fire becomes largest single wildfire in California history. . . The fire, which has burned for 23 days and forced mass evacuations, razed the Gold Rush town of Greenville on Thursday, destroying 91 buildings and damaging five others. Smoke from the blaze has blown to lower parts of Northern California, including the state capital of Sacramento where the air quality index on Friday reached "unhealthy" levels. "

https://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2021/08/06/dixie-fire-becomes-largest-single-wildfire-in-california-history-1389651

The Dixie Fire is still actively burning, with only about 35% containment at the present time.

Anne

[Cudedog]

UPDATE 9:11 a.m. 8/7/21 Saturday

The Dixie Fire continues to burn, increasing nearly 14,000 acres from yesterday, from 432,813 acres burned on Friday to 446,723 acres burned as of this morning.

Winds were calm overnight, which helped with the firefighting effort.

Yesterday, the fire was posted as being about 35% contained, as of this morning (perhaps due the fire's rapid spread) containment is now listed as at only 21%. Full containment is currently predicted to occur by August 20; I think this estimate will be extended to later in August, probably on into September.

30,698 people in the area remain evacuated from their homes.

As of last night (Friday) at 8:00 p.m. the Plumas County Sheriff's Office issued a message requesting assistance from the public in locating 8 missing persons in the fire area; 6 from the town of Greenville (which burned); one from Chester and one from Crescent Mills (both Chester and Crescent Mills remain under mandatory evacuation order as of this morning).

There are currently 5,818 personnel assigned to this fire, with (currently) 266 structures listed as destroyed.

The entirety of Lassen Volcanic National Park remains closed at this time, with the fire continuing to burn deep within the interior of the park.

Currently assigned to the Dixie Fire:

27 Helicopters
384 Fire Engines
107 Bulldozers
124 Water Tenders
87 Fire Crews
5,118 Personnel (as also listed above)

Here is a very interesting video, posted about a week ago, about a "Fire City", that is, how firefighters live while they are deployed fighting a fire for weeks at a time, far from their homes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxHL1PeIkUw

This camp is located in Quincy, the capitol of Plumas County. Quincy is very close to the Dixie Fire.

Anne

[Cudedog]

Update 8/9/21 @ 8:50 a.m. PST
_________

The north-east arm of the Dixie Fire is burning towards Eagle Lake, and the Merrill Campground (Merrill is the site of an Women RV GTG of a few years back) a beautiful place on the shores of Eagle Lake. The eastern section of the north-east arm of the Dixie Fire is about 11 miles east of Merrill Campground, burning towards Eagle Lake and the campground.
_________

Video, Dixie Fire Almanor, Ca. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7be5-HuJKU

YESTERDAY, with smoke inversion tamping down the fire, and with moderating winds, the fire is now at 489,287 acres, with only 21% containment (NOTE: "Containment" does not mean the percentage of the fire that has been extinguished, it means the percentage of the fire that is contained, or surrounded. Even when a fire is 100 contained, the interior can still be actively burning, with a possibility of the fire jumping the containment lines).

TODAY, smoke is expected to move out of the area later today, "Fire behavior is expected to increase with clear air and a warming trend that is forecast to peak mid-week." The Sacramento Bee is stating that the fire burned an additional 16,000 acres Sunday into Monday.

It appears at this time that the towns of Chester and Crescent Mills have both been spared.

Both the north-east arm, and the south-east arm of the fire is approaching Westwood, which has been evacuated. The north-east arm of the fire is approximately 6 1/2 miles from Westwood, the south-east arm of the fire is approximately 4 miles from Westwood. Thus Westwood is being approached by the fire from two different directions.

Video, Dixie Fire Westwood, Ca. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TviCTZXYPMc

The south-east arm of the fire continues to burn in an east to north-east direction, towards the towns of Janesville (approximately 7 miles from the fire) and the larger town of Susanville (approximately 10 miles from the fire). People in the Janesville area are beginning to evacuate.

Video, Dixie Fire Janesville, Ca. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkM0Z1SpZck

The north-east arm of the fire continues to burn deep within the heart of Lassen Volcanic National Park, about 3 miles from Cinder Cone in the northern part of the north-east arm.

As of this morning, the Dixie Fire, at 489,287 acres, remains the largest single (non-complex) fire ever to burn in the state of California.

The Dixie Fire is now the second largest over-all fire ever to burn in the state of California (this includes fire "complexes", that is many individual fires burning within a small geographical area that don't have individual names, but instead are named as a "complex" - the Dixie Fire is not a complex). The Sacramento Bee is stating that the Dixie Fire burned an additional 16,000 acres Sunday into (today) Monday.

The Dixie Fire continues to actively burn, with only 21% containment.

Additionally, there are 10 other large fires actively burning within the state of California, for a total of 841,370 acres burned or currently burning (this number includes the Dixie Fire).

Anne

[OregonLuvr]

We have so many fires burning in Oregon and California I just cant keep up with all the names anymore. Now that is sad.

[Colliemom]

[list=][url][/url]

[/list]And this news is not good either. It’s been all over the news yesterday.



https://www.theguardian.com/science/202 ... tists-warn

[Cudedog]

And this news is not good either. It’s been all over the news yesterday.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/aug/09/humans-have-caused-unprecedented-and-irreversible-change-to-climate-scientists-warn

Thanks for the link, Sue.

I have been thinking about this Global Warm. . . er, lets say "Change in the Weather" thing for quite a while.

There may be another element to this phenomenon as well. . . I have been watching online YouTube geology lectures by a professor at Washington State University (in Ellensburg, Washington) by name of Nick Zentner (excellent lectures, should anyone be interested).

One of the things he mentioned that might be causing - or at least influencing this - "Change in the Weather" might be something called the Milankovich Cycles (which mostly no one has ever heard of - I know I hadn't. But it may also be a valid hypothesis):

"Milankovitch cycles describe the collective effects of changes in the Earth's movements on its climate over thousands of years. The term is named for Serbian geophysicist and astronomer Milutin Milankovic. In the 1920s, he hypothesized that variations in eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession resulted in cyclical variation in the solar radiation reaching the Earth, and that this orbital forcing strongly influenced the Earth's climatic patterns."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milankovitch_cycles

Really interesting stuff!

Anne

[snowball]

Anne an area you might one to look into is the Black Hills area it kinda fills all of your list...
sheila

[Bethers]

Anne an area you might one to look into is the Black Hills area it kinda fills all of your list...
sheila

If I had discovered the Black Hills earlier in my life I may have moved there. After the last 7 years spending 1/2 a year there, I do miss them this summer. Awesome area. The only weather yuck is the hail the area is known for and that didn't stop me from going back all those summers. If I were to stop traveling I could see summers there and winters at my Arizona casita. I could really become a snowbird. . Hmmm, something to think about.

[Cudedog]

Anne an area you might one to look into is the Black Hills area it kinda fills all of your list...
sheila

Thanks, Sheila! I hadn't given any thought at all to the Black Hills. I appreciate the suggestion!

Now, off to Zillow to see what there is to see!

Thanks again!

Anne

[Cudedog]

_________

Update Wednesday, 8/11/21 @ 8:32 a.m.
_________

The Dixie Fire continues to burn, along with 10 other large fires burning in the state. As of August 13/14, the Dixie Fire will have been actively burning for one month's time. It will likely continue to burn until late October/early November when the seasonal rains arrive. If they arrive.

Yesterday, a California teacher was arrested for arson for starting multiple additional fires in the area of the Dixie Fire and elsewhere.

"NorCal college professor arrested on suspicion of setting 7 blazes near Dixie Fire"

https://ktla.com/news/norcal-college-professor-arrested-on-suspicion-of-setting-7-blazes-near-dixie-fire/

Additionally, it is alleged that a drone flying in the area where the Dixie Fire began prevented CalFire from making a drop on the fire (and possibly extinguishing it) when the Dixie Fire was still just a few acres, before it began to explode in size.

Investigators Probing PG&E's Possible Link to Fateful Dixie Fire Drone Flight

https://www.kqed.org/news/11884337/investigators-probing-pges-possible-link-to-fateful-dixie-fire-drone-flight

Over the last few days, weather conditions have assisted firefighters in structure protection, putting out spot fires, and building/reinforcing fire lines, as the fire has remained relatively "calm".

As of this morning, the fire has only burned "minimally" (everything is relative) outside the fire's current footprint, only increasing "slightly" from 489,287 acres on Monday, to 501,008 acres as of this morning, Wednesday (an increase of 11,721 acres).

Estimated date of containment for he Dixie Fire has been extended to August 30.

Temperatures are predicted to again heat up starting today and into the rest of the week with dry lightning strikes predicted over the area (and much of Northern California) starting tomorrow (Thursday) and continuing on into Saturday.

Winds today in the fire area predicted to be from 16 - 20 mph, from the south-west.

With rising temperatures, lowering humidities, higher wind gusts and possible dry lightning strikes (lightning striking the drought-stricken forest without rain is very likely to ignite still more fires) it is anticipated that fire activity will actively increase over the coming days.

The town of Susanville is currently about 9 miles from the eastern arm of the fire, the town of Janesville is currently at about 8 miles from the eastern arm.

The western arm of the fire appears to be approaching the entrance and lovely visitor's center and associated support buildings of Lassen Volcanic National Park, now currently at about 8 miles distant from the fire's western edge.

The Dixie Fire remains the largest single-fire ever to burn in modern California; it has now (again, at a half-million acres - 489,287 acres) become the second largest ever to burn in modern California, as measured against "fire complex" fires.

The largest "fire complex" fire ever to burn in modern California (burning last year, in August, 2020) was the August Complex Fire at over one million acres (1,032,648 acres).

The Dixie Fire also remains the largest fire currently burning in the United States.

Current "footprint" of the fire is now 764.510938 square miles.

With a fire of this size, it is extremely unlikely that it will be fully extinguished until the Autumn rains arrive, these days usually (hopefully. . .) late October/early November. About 3 months from now.

If the rains arrive late, or not at all, all bets are off.

Anne

[Cudedog]

_____________
Update on the arrest of the man accused of committing serial arson near California's current major wildfires.
_____________

The man is alleged to have set fires behind firefighters working the Dixie Fire, with the alleged intention of trapping the firefighters between the Dixie Fire and the new fires he was creating.

"Former College Professor Accused Of Serial Arson Is Denied Bail In California"

https://www.npr.org/2021/08/11/1026700103/former-college-professor-arson-charges-california-dixie-fire

Anne