California Wildfires - San Francisco Chronicle

Downed PG&E; power line blamed for sparking Irving Fire in Marin County

Downed PG&E; power line blamed for sparking Irving Fire in Marin County

By Gwendolyn Wu
A fallen Pacific Gas & Electric Co. power line caused the 152-acre Irving Fire that ignited in Samuel P. Taylor State Park west of Fairfax on Monday night, Marin County officials said Wednesday. ...

This interactive map was developed in The San Francisco Chronicle newsroom and provides information on wildfires burning across California. Click to view the real-time map

Evacuations lifted, roads opened after firefighters suppress Marin County blaze

Evacuations lifted, roads opened after firefighters suppress Marin County blaze

By Gwendolyn Wu
Firefighters lifted evacuation orders in Marin County after getting the upper hand Tuesday on the Irving Fire burning in Samuel P. Taylor State Park. The blaze burned 152 acres and was 45 percent ...

California Wildfires: The lives lost across the state

The 2018 fire season in California is shaping up to be an incredibly deadly year. These are the residents who died in the blazes.

Evacuations ordered in Marin County after wildland fire breaks...

California Highway Patrol Golden Gate Division helicopter responded to assist the Marin County Fire Department with a vegetation fire in Samuel P Taylor State Park on Monday night, Sept. 10, 2018.

A vegetation fire was burning out of control at Samuel P. Taylor State Park in Marin County early Tuesday morning, consuming 100 acres across steep terrain and prompting officials to order evacuations. ...

Fire crew move on California blazes: evacuation ends in Napa,...

TOPSHOT - Light from a train is seen as it rounds a bend near the Sacramento River as flames from the Delta Fire fill a valley in Delta, California on September 6, 2018. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images) *** BESTPIX ***

All evacuation orders in Napa County for the Snell Fire have been lifted, authorities said Monday, and about 180 homes are no longer threatened. Fire and law enforcement officials lifted evacuation ...

Firefighters battle to gain on blazes across Northern California

Embers fly above a firefighter as he hustles to control a backfire as the Delta Fire burns in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Calif., on Thursday, Sept. 6, 2018.

Interstate 5, the state’s main north-south transportation artery, will remain closed indefinitely by the raging Delta Fire, authorities said Sunday. The freeway has been shut down since Wednesday ...

New fire near Lake Berryessa in Napa County forces evacuations

Flames from a backfire burn a hillside as fire fighters battle the Delta Fire in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Calif., on Thursday, Sept. 6, 2018. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A wildfire ignited in Napa County near the northwestern shore of Lake Berryessa on Saturday, quickly growing to at least 1,700 acres and forcing residents to flee. The Snell Fire prompted evacuations of ...

California Wildfires: Blaze near Redding grows to 24,000 acres

A conflagration north of Redding — an area already devastated this summer by the deadly Carr Fire — continued to rage Friday morning as the Delta Fire grew overnight to 24,000 acres in total with no ...

Facilities’ staff fled, abandoned seniors during Tubbs Fire,...

The Journey's End mobile home park burns during a the Tubbs fire on Mendocino Avenue in Santa Rosa, Calif., on Monday, Oct. 9, 2017.

State regulators moved to revoke the licenses of two Santa Rosa senior housing facilities Thursday after finding that employees abandoned dozens of elderly and disabled residents during a confused and ...

$234 million sought as new wildfires wreak havoc on state

SACRAMENTO — California’s firefighting agency is running out of money in the midst of a disastrous and deadly fire season and needs another $234 million to make it through the middle of next year, ...

California wildfires begin to wane in last month of summer

The Carr Fire burns along Highway 299 in Redding, Calif., on Thursday, July 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

While the state’s biggest and most destructive wildfires have been extinguished or largely encircled, firefighters continue to battle blazes in mostly rural areas of Northern California. The Ranch ...

California wildfires: How 20 major blazes have ignited since 1991

Columns of smoke rise from the Atlas Fire as it burns in the hills East of Napa, Calif., on Monday, October, 9, 2017.

Riding a lawn mower over dry grass. Target shooting on a hot day. Cutting a metal pipe. Faulty wiring in a hot tub. These are among the countless ways that wildfires have started in California, and ...

Wildfire forces evacuations in Tahoe National Forest

Location of the fire off I-80 on Labor Day.

A fast-moving wildfire that ignited in the Tahoe National Forest on Monday quickly grew to 650 acres, prompting the evacuations of several campgrounds at the end of the Labor Day holiday weekend. The ...

California legislature approves bill criticized as a PG&E...;

Flames moved through the hills above the Silverado Trail as a fast moving wind whipped wildfire raged though wine region in Napa, Oct 9, 2017.

Sacramento — After months of furious lobbying, a bill that would help Pacific Gas and Electric Co. deal with the costs of last year’s devastating wildfires — in part by passing some of those costs on ...

After deadly Carr Fire, a question of how — and whether —...

Daniel Wood, 5, (right) shows his grandfather Matthew Schjoth a wrench he found as they look through the destroyed remains of their home on Harlan Drive in Redding, California, on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018.

REDDING — Big blazes had licked the rugged outskirts of this city before, blackening nearby forests. But a wildfire had never surged across city limits — not until the Carr Fire changed everything. ...

Verizon, under fire for throttling firefighters’ data speed,...

(Left to right) Rudy Reyes, vice president and associate general counsel of the western region at Verizon, David Hickey, executive director of business sales at Verizon Wireless, and Wes Senechal, vice president - government sales, Verizon Wireless, exit their seats after answering questions by the Assembly Select Committee during the Verizon Wireless "Data Throttling" of Mendocino Complex Firefighters' Internet Access hearing at the California State Capitol, in Room 126, in Sacramento, Calif., on Friday, August 24, 2018. The Assembly Select Committee, Natural Disaster Response, Recovery, and Rebuilding, held the hearing at the Capitol to investigate the data throttling Verizon imposed on Santa Clara firefighters' communications system last month as they were battling the Mendocino Complex fires.

SACRAMENTO — Verizon executives came to the Capitol on Friday to get a tongue lashing over the cell phone giant’s throttling of data service for firefighters battling the massive Mendocino Complex ...

Firefighters on Mendocino Complex endangered by Verizon move...

MIDDLETOWN, CA - SEPTEMBER 13: Fire captains with the Santa Clara County Fire Department gather for a briefing before their shift to battle the Valley Fire on September 13, 2015 in Middletown, California. The fast-moving fire has consumed 40,000 acres and is currently zero percent contained. (Photo by Stephen Lam/ Getty Images)

Santa Clara County firefighters were dangerously hobbled by poor internet service while they were helping battle the monstrous Mendocino Complex fire in July because Verizon drastically slowed down the ...

‘Best chance’ to end largest wildfire in California...

Fire retardant is dropped near a home as the Mendocino Complex Fire burns off of Keck Road, just west of Lakeport, Calif., on Monday, July 30, 2018. (Jose Luis Villegas/Sacramento Bee/TNS)

A second night of increased humidity and lower temperatures was expected to help slow down the Ranch Fire, which grew only by a few thousand acres from Monday to Tuesday. The fire, the ...

Firefighter’s death may be linked to safety breach in...

WEST VALLEY CITY, UT - AUGUST 20: A picture of Battalion Chief Matthew David Burchett, sits on stage as mourners hug each other before his funeral at the Maverik Center on August 20, 2018 in West Valley City, Utah. Burchett was killed on August 13, 2018 as he was fighting the Mendocino Complex Fire in Northern California, the largest fire in California history. Burchett was one of several Utah firefighters that were sent to California to help out with several large fires. Burchett is survived by his wife and a seven year old son. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)

Fire retardant dropped from an airplane into an area that should have been cleared of firefighters may have had something to do with last week’s death of a battalion chief at Northern California’s ...

California wildfires: New evacuations ordered for Mendocino...

FILE -- Firefighters light a backfire while battling the Mendocino Complex Fire near Potter Valley, Calif., on Aug. 9, 2018. In total, fires in California have burned one million acres so far this year. (Jim Wilson/The New York Times)

Overnight fire activity in the north and northeastern portions of the Mendocino Complex pushed more people out of their homes Sunday evening and early Monday morning as the Glenn County Sheriff’s ...

Blaze near Yosemite fully contained

The Ferguson fire burns along a hillside near the Merced River in Yosemite, Calif., on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018. The Yosemite Valley reopened as firefighters strengthen containment of the Ferguson fire. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

The Ferguson Fire, which consumed nearly 100,000 acres of Mariposa County and shrouded spectacular Yosemite Valley for much of the summer in clouds of smoke, was declared 100 percent contained Sunday. ...

PG&E;’s bid to change wildfire liability rules appears dead...

Firefighters work to save structures on Soda Canyon Road in Napa, Calif., on Monday, Oct. 9, 2017.

SACRAMENTO — As fires burned across Northern California last fall, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. launched a lobbying campaign whose outcome could mean billion of dollars for the utility. ...

Firefighters battle hot, dry conditions at Mendocino Complex

Firefighter Thomas Harre stands silhouetted by the sun, colored by the heavy smoke in the air, at the Incident Command Post before heading out to the Mendocino Complex Fire in Ukiah, Calif., on Tuesday, August 14, 2018.

Firefighters were making progress on extending containment lines on the largest wildfire in California history, though unhealthy ozone levels caused by smoky conditions and 90-degree temperatures will ...

Big Boost from Down Under: Australians and Kiwis join...

New Zealand firefighter Phil Muldoon, left, coordinates water refills with Bernardo Gonzalez, right, of the Redwood Valley Fire Department, in the Mendocino National Forest while fighting the Mendocino Complex Fire east of Ukiah, Calif., on Tuesday, August 14, 2018.

UKIAH, Mendocino County — The call came in early August. Wildfires were ripping along America’s western coast from California to Alaska, and there weren’t nearly enough firefighters to respond. ...

California wildfires: Hot weather could refuel Mendocino Complex

Utah firefighter Matt Burchett, 42, who died fighting a wildfire in California, is honored by a detail along Murray Parkway as his body is returned home, traveling along Interstate 215 after being flown to the Utah Air National Guard in Salt Lake City, Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018. Burchett was hit by a falling tree and died Monday night while fighting the largest blaze in California history, the Mendocino Complex fire north of San Francisco. (Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune via AP)

Progress made over the past few days in fighting the largest wildfire in California history could be lost this weekend, as the weather seems unlikely to continue to cooperate. The ...

Jeremiah ‘Jeremy’ Stoke’s ‘sacrifice will resonate...

This Thursday, June 26, 2018, photo released by Casey Lansdon shows Redding fire inspector Jeremy Stoke in Redding, Calif. A wildfire roared with little warning into the Northern California city as thousands of people scrambled to escape before the walls of flames descended from forested hills onto their neighborhoods, officials said Friday. Stoke was killed in the blaze. (Casey Lansdon via AP)

Jeremiah “Jeremy” Stoke was helping residents evacuate in west Redding when he became entrapped by a massive fire tornado as the Carr Fire tore through the city on July 26, killing him. Stoke, 37, ...

Firefighters gain on California wildfires, but temperatures...

FIrefighters prepare to depart for their assignments knowing that a firefighter from Utah had been killed the previous evening in the Mendocino Complex Fire east of Ukiah, Calif., on Tuesday, August 14, 2018.

Firefighters made promising headway Thursday in containing and preventing the growth of a relentless blaze that’s become the largest in state history , but officials warned that rising temperatures this ...

Catastrophic fire tornadoes: a terrifying new challenge

FIE--In this July 28, 2018, file photo, a firefighter walks along a containment line in front of the advancing Carr Fire in Redding, Calif. Redding firefighter Jeremy Stoke died after he was enveloped in seconds by a fire tornado with a diameter of 1,000 feet (300 meters) and winds up to 165 mph (265 kph), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in a report released Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, detailing his death and the death of a bulldozer operator. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, file)

The titanic fire tornado that killed a firefighter and ravaged Redding on July 26 as the Carr Fire hit its peak has presented fire crew leaders with a frightening new challenge: how to battle a raging ...

Vegetation fire in Healdsburg prompts mandatory evacuations

A vegetation fire just west of Madrona Manor in Healdsburg has prompted mandatory evacuations, officials announced Thursday afternoon.

Firefighters are stopping the progression of a vegetation fire just west of Madrona Manor on West Dry Creek Road in Healdsburg that prompted mandatory evacuations on Thursday afternoon. At least two ...

Massive Carr Fire tornado trapped, killed Redding firefighter,...

Gary Parmely, father of Jeremy Stoke of the Redding Fire Department, visits a memorial for his son who was killed in the Carr Fire.

Death came in an instant. And as never seen before in California history. The Redding firefighter who died on July 26 as the fast-growing Carr Fire hit its apex was in fact killed by a fire tornado, the ...

Carr Fire’s horrendous tornado captured in newly released...

A structure burns as the Carr Fire races along Highway 299 near Redding, Calif., on Thursday, July 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Videos released Wednesday by California fire officials show the massive fire tornado that tore through Redding on July 26 as the Carr Fire entered the city. The tornado was 1,000 feet in diameter at its ...

California wildfires: Mendocino Complex crews light fires to...

Firefighters tend to hotspots in a back-burned area in the Mendocino National Forest that was burned in the Mendocino Complex Fire east of Ukiah, Calif., on Tuesday, August 14, 2018.

Battling the largest wildfire in California history has left crews with one option: remove the fuel by starting fires. The Mendocino Complex, made up of the Ranch and River fires, grew ...

Increasing wildfires exhaust state’s firefighting force,...

Deputy Chief Mark Brown, of the Marin County Fire Department, poses for a portrait at the Marin City Fire Department in Sausalito, Cali., on Thursday, August 2, 2018. Brown, 49, responded to the wildfires in SoCal and throughout the summer.

Mark Brown had just stepped onto the baseball field when his phone rang. Glancing over at his fellow umpires and the group of 12-year-old boys who had lined up to bat, he took a deep breath and answered. ...

Moment of silence on the fire line: Death hits home at...

Matthew Burchett, 42, of the Draper City Fire Department was killed while fighting on the front lines of the Mendocino Complex, authorities said.

UKIAH, Mendocino County — In the predawn hush, Sean Kavanaugh climbed the three steps to the stage to lead the Tuesday morning operational briefing. Only three steps, but some days, ...

California wildfires: Firefighter’s death the 6th of 2018;...

A destroyed vehicle on burned property after the Ranch fire burned through the area, in the Spring Valley community near Clearlake, Calif., Aug. 8, 2018. The Mendocino Complex fire system, a combination of the Ranch fire and the River fire, has grown to more than 300,000 acres. Billowing smoke from the historic wildfire season has caused hazardous air conditions across the state, prompting air quality alerts and forcing many residents to take refuge indoors to avoid unhealthy exposure to bad air. (Jim Wilson/The New York Times)

Yosemite Valley reopened Tuesday, three weeks after the deadly Ferguson Fire forced the closure of the popular summertime tourist attraction. Yosemite Valley Lodge, the Majestic Yosemite ...

Third firefighter killed while responding to Carr Fire near...

A firefighter hikes up a trail in an area burned by the Ranch fire around Clearlake, Calif., Aug. 8, 2018. The Mendocino Complex fire system, a combination of the Ranch fire and the River fire, has grown to more than 300,000 acres. Billowing smoke from the historic wildfire season has caused hazardous air conditions across the state, prompting air quality alerts and forcing many residents to take refuge indoors to avoid unhealthy exposure to bad air. (Jim Wilson/The New York Times)

The death toll in what was already the most lethal year for firefighters in California since 2008 increased to five Thursday, when a heavy equipment mechanic was killed after falling asleep at the wheel on ...

Sixth firefighter killed in California’s battle against...

Kim Burns sits in the charred rubble of her home burned in the Carr Fire, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2018, in Redding, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A firefighter died in the line of duty while battling California’s biggest wildfire, state officials announced Monday, the same day that Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke toured another fire site and said ...

In California’s new wildfire reality, facing the need for...

San Diego firefighter Juan Mendez takes a moment to listen to the radio calls near Tunnel View during the Ferguson Fire at National Yosemite Park on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018, in Mariposa County, Calif.

YOSEMITE WEST — When a wall of flames raced up the hillside at Avalanche Creek on a recent afternoon, firefighters in Yosemite National Park had to act quickly. The giant Ferguson Fire ...

Critics pan Zinke’s solutions to California’s wildfire crisis

Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke listens during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., on December 20, 2017. (Chris Kleponis/Polaris/Pool/Abaca Press/TNS)

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Monday that California could nip the threat of deadly wildfires with more aggressive forest management, a suggestion that critics dismissed as a shameless invitation for ...

California wildfires raising environmental issues for...

Republican Rep. Tom McClintock is interviewed in his office February 19, 2013 in Granite Bay, California.

Firefighters may be able to extinguish the wildfires roaring through California within weeks, but the political effect of the blazes could last at least until the Nov. 6 midterm elections. With flames ...

Ranch Fire now largest in California history at 282,479 acres

Firefighters monitor a backfire while battling the Ranch Fire, part of the Mendocino Complex Fire, on Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2018, near Ladoga, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Firefighters reported progress Sunday in their battles against blazes across the state, increasing containment on the largest wildfire in state history. The Mendocino Complex fires, made up of the River ...

Ed Bledsoe couldn’t outrace the Carr Fire to save his...

Ed Bledsoe visits the wreckage of his home near Redding on Wednesday, August 8, 2018. Bledsoe lost his wife, Melody, and great-grandchildren, James Roberts Jr., 5, and Emily Roberts, 4, in the Carr Fire.

REDDING — Melody and the kids are on vacation, somewhere far away, Ed Bledsoe told himself as he steered his old red pickup along this city’s back roads. They weren’t running errands with him in the ...

Hot, dry conditions could stoke wildfires this weekend

The Ranch fire burns along the side of Elk Mountain Road outside Potter Valley, Calif., Aug. 9, 2018. The Mendocino Complex fire system, a combination of the Ranch fire and the River fire, has grown to more than 300,000 acres. (Jim Wilson/The New York Times)

With a new round of weather warnings in place for the weekend, firefighters continued their battle to prevent the deadly wildfires burning in Northern California from growing, officials said Saturday. ...

As California burns, volunteer firefighters become harder to find

Volunteer firefighter Dick Brown is on duty at the Calaveras Consolidated Fire Protection District�s Station 3 in Valley Springs, Calif. on Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2018. Fire departments throughout California are struggling to recruit volunteer firefighters, which many rural districts rely on.

Dick Brown isn’t sure how much longer he will be a volunteer firefighter. At 66 years old, he doesn’t douse flames much anymore, instead driving the water tender to blazes in rural Calaveras County. ...

California wildfires: Yosemite to reopen amid red-flag...

Loretta Root wipes her eyes while visiting the remains of her home in the Keswick area burned in the Carr Fire, Thursday, Aug. 9, 2018, in Redding, Calif. "It's hard to see this," Root says of her family home. Several of Root's family members living nearby also lost their homes to the fire. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A rare piece of good news emerged from California’s fire lines Friday when federal officials announced that Yosemite Valley will reopen to the public Tuesday, nearly three weeks after a wildfire forced a ...

Yosemite Valley scheduled to reopen Tuesday after fire closure

A helicopter battling the Ferguson Fire below Wawona Road at Yosemite National Park on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018, in Mariposa County, Calif.

Yosemite Valley will reopen to the public Tuesday, almost three weeks after a wildfire forced its shutdown, stripping countless tourists of their vacations and local merchants of their profits. ...

Largest wildfire in CA history expected to be contained in...

LODOGA, CA - AUGUST 07: A Cal Fire firefighter monitors a back fire while battling the Medocino Complex fire on August 7, 2018 near Lodoga, California. The Mendocino Complex Fire, which is made up of the River Fire and Ranch Fire, has surpassed the Thomas Fire to become the largest wildfire in California state history with over 280,000 acres charred and at least 75 homes destroyed. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

California’s biggest-ever wildfire grew to 10 times the size of San Francisco on Wednesday, as the Mendocino Complex sent clouds of cough-inducing smoke across the Bay Area and forced officials to admit ...

Firefighters respond to blaze on Black Mountain in Marin County

Firefighters from the Marin County Fire Department were battling the Bridge Fire on Wednesday afternoon, after a wildfire sparked up on Black Mountain just west of Nicasio Reservoir, authorities said. ...

Friends, family share memories of PG&E; worker killed near Carr...

PG&E works on restoring power on Bush Street in the aftermath of the Carr Fire in Keswick, Calif. on Monday, July 30, 2018.

Jairus Ayeta, said a colleague who worked with him, was a “damn good line hand.” “He had a great attitude and outlook on life,” said Christopher Utterback. “Definitely one of the best pole ...

California giving out $170 million in cap-and-trade revenue to...

The Mary Estates subdivision is seen damaged from above during the Carr Fire in Redding, California, on Saturday, July 28, 2018.

California officials said Tuesday that they will grant more than $170 million in cap-and-trade funds to local governments and organizations to prevent fires and improve the health of forests. ...

California wildfires prompt ‘Spare the Air’ days across...

A chimney remains standing at a house destroyed in the Ranch Fire in Spring Valley near Clearlake Oaks, northern California, on August 7, 2018. Tens of thousands of firefighters battled relentless flames ripping across California on August 7, as the death toll from a series of infernos that erupted last month hit 11. The raging Mendocino Complex fire comprising twin blazes in the western state's north has now ravaged more than 290,000 acres (117,359 hectares) -- approximately the size of sprawling Los Angeles -- in less than two weeks, becoming California's largest wildfire since record-keeping began a century ago. / AFP PHOTO / JOSH EDELSONJOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images

Smoke from Northern California wildfires drifting into the Bay Area has prompted air quality officials to declare Spare the Air Days for Wednesday and Thursday and caution people sensitive to smoke to ...

As wildfire blazes on, Yosemite-area tourist industry ravaged

From left: Sam Pioske heads into the groceries store as Tim Hooper puts up a new sign, Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2018, in Mariposa, Calif.

MARIPOSA — The views up the Merced River Canyon toward Yosemite were obscured Tuesday by thick wildfire smoke. But there would be a bright spot for the disappointed sightseers who for weeks have been ...

Biggest wildfire in California’s history nears 300,000 acres...

Firefighters watch a back burn during the Mendocino Complex fire in Upper Lake, California on July 31, 2018. - The Mendocino Complex -- made up of two fires -- has burned more than 24,000 acres in total since July 27. Thousands of firefighters in California made some progress against several large-scale blazes that have turned close to 200,000 acres (80,940 hectares) into an ashen wasteland, destroyed expensive homes, and killed eight fire personnel and civilians in the most populous US state. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images) *** BESTPIX ***

Firefighters got the upper hand Tuesday on the withering onslaught of fire that has plagued California for three weeks, but the continuing heat and parched conditions left exhausted firefighters anxious ...

Evacuations lifted, roads opened after firefighters suppress Marin County blaze

Evacuations lifted, roads opened after firefighters suppress Marin County blaze

By Gwendolyn Wu
Firefighters lifted evacuation orders in Marin County after getting the upper hand Tuesday on the Irving Fire burning in Samuel P. Taylor State Park. The blaze burned 152 acres and was 45 percent ...

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This interactive map was developed in The San Francisco Chronicle newsroom and provides information on wildfires burning across California. Click to view the real-time map

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