The King Fire was a wildfire that scorched over of land in
El Dorado County, California
El Dorado County (), officially the County of El Dorado, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 191,185. The county seat is Placerville. The County is part of the Sacramento- Roseville-A ...
in the fall of 2014. The fire, which was named because it started off King of the Mountain Road in Pollock Pines, started on September 13, 2014, near
Pollock Pines, California
Pollock Pines is a census-designated place (CDP) in El Dorado County, California, United States. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade– Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area. Pollock Pines lies at an elevation of in the Sierra Ne ...
, to the east of
Sacramento
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
.
Events
On September 16, three days after starting, the fire had spread to forcing the evacuation of over five hundred homes. A handcrew of ten inmates and a Fire Captain were saved from being overrun when they were led to safety by a helicopter that was staged at the nearby
Swansboro Country Airport
Swansboro Country Airport is four air miles (6 km) northeast of Placerville, in El Dorado County, California. It is owned by the Swansboro Country Property Owners Association.
Most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifie ...
.
By September 18, the fire had expanded to , becoming the second largest wildfire of the
2014 California wildfire season.
As a result of this growth, the mandatory evacuation order was expanded to 20,000 homes.
By the start of October the fire had grown to with containment increasing to 94%.
On October 9, the perimeter of the King Fire was reported to be 100% contained, with a final acreage of .
During the following days, pockets of fire continued burning deep inside the containment lines.
On October 10, the closure area was reduced, as additional progress was made.
During the next several days, the wildfire was diminished further, as the weather in the region entered a cooling trend. The King Fire injured a total of twelve people and caused the evacuation of nearly 3,000 people in the area.
It destroyed 12 singles residences and 68 other residential structures, but the amount of damage caused by the wildfire remains unknown.
Cause
On September 18, 2014, Wayne Huntsman was arrested on suspicion of
intentionally starting the fire.
He initially pled not guilty to the charges, but in April 2016 pled guilty to arson. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay $60 million in restitution.
See also
*
2014 California wildfires
2014 saw several notable wildfires igniting in California, especially during the month of May, when multiple fires were ablaze concurrently in Southern California, and during September, when several massive wildfires were burning in Northern Ca ...
References
{{2014 California wildfires
2014 California wildfires
Wildfires in El Dorado County, California