The Walker Fire was a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

that burned near Genesee Valley in the

Plumas National Forest Plumas National Forest is a 1,146,000-acre (4,638 km2) United States National Forest located at the northern terminus of the Sierra Nevada, in northern California. The Forest was named after its primary watershed, the Rio de las Plumas, or F ...

approximately 11 miles east of the community of Taylorsville in

Plumas County, California Plumas County () is a county in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,790. The county seat is Quincy, and the only incorporated city is Portola. The largest community in the county is ...

. The blaze was reported on Wednesday, September 4, 2019 and immediately expanded in size over its several days of burning. The fire actively threatened homes from

Genesee Valley The Genesee River is a tributary of Lake Ontario flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York in the United States. The river provided the original power for the Rochester area's 19th century mills and still provides hy ...

to Antelope Road.

Events

Early in the afternoon of Wednesday, September 4, a fire was reported burning southeast of the Flournoy Bridge just outside Genesee Valley. First responders estimated the size of the fire to be roughly between 3 and 5 acres, however, burning with a critical rate of spread due to strong and erratic winds. By late evening of that day, the fire was over 750 acres in size as the community of

was placed under a mandatory evacuation order. On Thursday, September 5, firefighters were reportedly making good progress as the fire was at 5% containment with 850 acres burned. However, later in the day, downdraft winds from late afternoon thunderstorms caused spotting ahead of the fireline which expanded the burn area to encompass up to . By Friday, September 6, fire activity had picked up significantly as further erratic, unpredictable winds and dry conditions lead the advancing fireline further into the Plumas National Forest towards the northeast spurring new voluntary evacuations of structures below Forest Road 26N11. The fire, originally burning Friday morning, had exploded to well over acres by Friday night due to the severe weather conditions, sending up a massive smoke column that was reportedly seen from as far as

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...

. The fire was then over acres in size by Saturday morning as containment remained at 0%. On September 10, the Walker Fire had grown to and was 12 percent contained. The Lassen County Fairground evacuation center was closed that morning. The majority of residential evacuation orders were lifted, except the Murdock Crossing and Stoney areas. The next evening, the fire continued to grow, but was 28 percent contained. Crews extended dozer lines and handlines to expand the containment. Structural defense was put in place for buildings at Murdock Crossing and mop up continued at Antelope Lake, Round Mountain and the eastern side of the fire. However, by the morning of September 14, the fire had expanded to and was 97 percent contained.

Evacuations and closures

Select areas of Plumas National Forest were closed, specifically within the Mt. Hough and

Beckwourth Ranger District Plumas National Forest is a 1,146,000- acre (4,638 km2) United States National Forest located at the northern terminus of the Sierra Nevada, in northern California. The Forest was named after its primary watershed, the Rio de las Plumas, or ...

s. Road closures included : Janesville Grade, Genesee Valley Road at the Flournoy Bridge, Antelope Lake Road from the Flournoy Bridge to Antelope Dam, and beginning at the Flournoy Bridge turnoff, and 111 Beckwourth-Genesee road through the fire area. Highway 395 remained open to the public.

Impact

Communities along

Highway 395 Route 395 or Highway 395 may refer to: Canada * British Columbia Highway 395 * Manitoba Provincial Road 395 * New Brunswick Route 395 * Nova Scotia Route 395 * Quebec Route 395 Great Britain * A395 road Japan * Japan National Route 39 ...

from Thunder Mountain Road (Wales Canyon) to the Laufman Grade (Old Highway 59), including the communities of Murdock Crossing, Stoney,

Milford Milford may refer to: Place names Canada * Milford (Annapolis), Nova Scotia * Milford (Halifax), Nova Scotia * Milford, Ontario England * Milford, Derbyshire * Milford, Devon, a place in Devon * Milford on Sea, Hampshire * Milford, Shro ...

and Brockman Canyon, were under mandatory evacuation.

References

External links

* {{California wildfires 2019 California wildfires September 2019 events in the United States Wildfires in Plumas County, California