Hells Half Complex Fire Update 7-7-2008
Incident: Hells Half Complex Wildfire
Released: 7/7/2008
Jess Secrest, Incident Commander
July 7, 2008, 8:00 a.m.
HELLS HALF COMPLEX FIRE UPDATE
Cause: Lightning
Start Date: 6/20/2008
Estimated Date of Containment: July 14, 2008
Acres: 3,641 acres
Containment: 54 percent
Fire Information: Gary Hoshide, Public Information Officer, (530) 629-2184
A public meeting will be held at the Trinity Elementary School in Willow Creek tonight, from 6 pm to 7 pm. Topics include: current fire conditions for the Hells Half and Iron Complexes and County Population Protection Plans. Representatives from the Forest Service and local counties will also answer questions following the presentations.
Current Fire Situation: Dangerous terrain, heavy fuels, dense smoke, and limited access into many areas continue to hamper fire suppression. Firefighting crews are staged at the Salyer Guard Station for responding to new fire starts.
The Underwood Mountain Road, between the community of Hyampom and Hwy 299, is open to public traffic. Fire vehicles are using the Underwood Mountain Road to access the Half Fire; the public should use caution and expect to see moderate vehicle traffic on the road.
No structures have been lost, and no evacuation orders have been issued.
Two active fires are still uncontained within the Complex.
The Half Fire, located approximately three miles southwest of Burnt Ranch, CA, is 1,950 acres and 27% contained. The fire is one mile west of the Underwood Mountain Road (Forest Route 60), along the boundary of the Six Rivers and Shasta-Trinity National Forests. The fire is most active on the southwest corner towards the South Fork Trinity River. Line improvement and burnout continued on the eastern flank of the fire. Fireline on the southeast corner was extended south to the old Panther burn. Fireline is completed on the northern perimeter, connecting the ridgetop in the northeast corner to the South Fork Trinity River.
The Grouse Fire, located six miles southwest of Burnt Ranch, CA, is 1,691 acres and 80% contained. The fire is within one mile of the Route 6 powerline corridor. The fire is actively burning in the areas of Coon Creek and Gary Creek. Hand and dozer lines are completed along the southern perimeter to the South Fork Trinity River.
Planned Actions: Half Fire. Improve and hold the fireline constructed along the entire east flank. Begin installation of fire hose line along the northern fireline to support burnout later in the week. Hold and improve the fireline constructed in Surprise Creek Valley. Hold and improve the dozer line constructed from the southeast corner at road 5N07 to the Panther burn. Grouse Fire. Continue mop-up on the west flank. Secure the fireline on the northeast edge to the South Fork Trinity River for burnout. Begin burnout if conditions are favorable. Helicopters with water buckets will support crews.
Resources Assigned: 8 hand crews (20 people each), 2 helicopters, 22 engines, 6 dozers, 6 water tenders for a total of 412 personnel.
Weather and Fire Behavior: Hot and dry. Forecasted temperatures in the lower elevations could reach over 100 degrees with relative humidity of 17 to 19 percent. Ridgetop winds are forecasted to be south southeast at 2 to 4 mph, becoming north northwest 5 to 10 mph by evening. With today's weather expect an increase in fire activity.
Closures: A closure order for the fire area is in effect and begins at the intersection of Forest Road No. 5N01 and Forest Route No. 6, then continues south along Forest Route No. 6 to the forest boundary, then continues northeasterly along the forest boundary to the northwest 1/4 of Section 28, Township 5 North, Range 6 East (Humboldt Base and Meridian), and then continues west to the starting point. A map is posted on the Six Rivers National Forest website.
For More Information: Call the Hells Half Complex fire information office at 530-629-2184. Information is posted on the Six Rivers National Forest website: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/sixrivers/, National InciWeb site: http://inciweb.org/Hells%20Half/www.inciweb.org, and Northern California Wildfire Joint Information Center web site: http://www.jointinformation.com/.
