Crews Continue Work on Orleans Complex as Red Flag Warning Issued

Press release from the Six Rivers National Forest Service:

Fallers on the Orleans Complex

YESTERDAY – There was an increase in fire activity yesterday, of unburned pockets of vegetation well within the fire perimeter. Along the southern area of the fire, in steep and extremely challenging terrain, crews found ways to continue suppression efforts directly on the fire’s edge assisted by helicopter water drops. The fire perimeter has been validated nightly using infrared flight technology to detect heat. More accurate mapping resulting from that data slightly reduced the reported acreage of the fire.

TODAY – Crews will continue working on the southern area of the fire near the Red Salmon Fire of 2020. Suppression repair work has begun across much of the Butler Fire, transitioning the landscape back to a more natural, pre-fire condition using crews and heavy equipment already assigned to the fire. There is a Red Flag Warning today for abundant lightning over dry fuels and widespread thunderstorms from2 p.m. – 11 p.m. today. This will impact a broad area of the fire, extending farther west than other storms. Firefighters and aircraft are ready to support new fire starts on both the Klamath and Six Rivers National Forest.

Click on the map to enlarge.

Due to recent downgrades in evacuation zones, the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office opened the entire length of Sawyers Bar Road to the public during the hours of 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., and 9 p.m. – 5 a.m. During closed hours, the road is heavily used by engines, crews, equipment, and emergency responders. Salmon River Road is now open to the public up to Cecilville Road, where the closure remains in effect. Please use extreme caution when driving as firefighters and equipment remain in the area.

WEATHER:
A Red Flag Warning is in effect today from 2:00 pm to 11:00 pm for abundant lightning on dry fuels. Cumulus clouds will be developing late this morning, with scattered to widespread thunderstorms occurring after 2:00 pm. Confidence is moderate for thunderstorms over the Butler Fire and high confidence for thunderstorms around Scott Valley. Thunderstorms are capable of producing gusty outflows to 40 mph, small hail, brief rainfall to 0.5”, and frequent cloud to ground lightning. Expect thunderstorm coverage to decrease starting at 8:00 pm, ending by 11:00 pm. A moderate inversion with weak thermal belting develops Wednesday night as skies clear. A fire Weather Watch is in effect for Thursday from 2:00 pm to 11:00 pm for isolated to scattered thunderstorms producing abundant lightning over dry fuels.4342_outlook

EVACUATIONS:

There are evacuation orders and warnings in the immediate vicinity of the fire. For current evacuation status, visit www.facebook.com/SiskiyouCountySheriff  and www.facebook.com/SiskiyouCountyOES. Additional evacuation information and a map can be found on the Genasys site at https://protect.genasys.com/search?z=14&latlon=41.550694%2C-122.905589 

CLOSURES:

An official forest closure around the Orleans Complex went into effect on July 16. Hikers are not permitted and will be asked to leave the area. For details and a map of the closure area, please visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/nfs/files/r05/klamath/publication/alerts/SRF%2010-25-09%20KNF%2025-0510%20Butler%20Closure%20Order%20%28AC%29%20Memo.pdf

FIRE RESTRICTIONS: 

Forest fire restrictions are currently in effect.  Please visit the local forest pages for more information: Klamath National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/klamath/alerts and Six Rivers National Forest: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r05/sixrivers/alerts.