Published August 13, 2022, 1920 hours PT
The MCKINNEY FIRE is located off of Hwy 96 and McKinney Creek Road, east of Happy Camp and southwest of Klamath River in Siskiyou County, which ignited from an unknown location on July 29, 2022, around 1416 hours PT.
Unified Command is with the CAL FIRE SKU and the Klamath National Forest.
The fire has burned approximately 60,392 acres of timber (litter and understory), tall grass, and brush and now has a 95% containment status.
The CA IIMT2 assumed command of the incident on Tuesday, August 2, 2022.
There is about 1,870 total personnel along with five helicopters, 154 engines, 31 dozers, 41 water tenders, and 36 crews.
About 11 structures have been damaged and 185 destroyed.
Additionally, there have been 11 injuries (both fire personnel and civilians) and four deaths..
Evacuation Information
- Multiple evacuation orders and warnings remain in effect. Please continue to monitor Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office,
- Siskiyou County Office of Emergency Services, and https://community.zonehaven.com/ for any updates on evacuations.
- A shelter has been established at the Weed Community Center, 161 E Lincoln Avenue, Weed, CA 96094.
Fire behavior has been observed as minimal with creeping and smoldering.
Some of the Incident Cooperators who assisted with fire suppression, containment efforts, and structure protection include the following:
MONTECITO FIRE DEPARTMENT – E391 and Strike Team 1521C have returned home. Some of their personnel will remain assigned to various IMT roles.
NOR CAL AIR OPERATIONS
SISKIYOU COUNTY SHERIFF – This Law Enforcement agency along with others assisted with evacuation orders to area residents and with a focus on deterring any criminal activity. There were about 60 members deployed on this incident.
KLAMATH NATIONAL FOREST – Hard work is necessary to get the job done during a wildfire incident. Here are CAL FIRE firefighters hiking in steep and rugged terrain carrying up a large number of hoses back to their fire cache.
PC: Rick Carhart/CAL FIRE
ARCADIA FIRE DEPARTMENT – four of their members are en route back to their families and quarters after being deployed for 20 days on this incident. They were released Friday and are working on returning, which will take two days. They were deployed additionally on the Oak Fire.
SISKIYOU COUNTY SHERIFF/SAR UNITS – As of August 5, 2022, County search and rescue volunteered more than 1,000 hours on this incident with staffing their ICP, planning operations, and searching homes, and whatever is needed and/or they are tasked with by Deputies.
As a former SAR volunteer with experience in staffing a County Command unit during a long incident, these are critical roles the Sheriff’s Office partners with volunteers who have been highly trained and certified in what they do. It’s a win-win for both organizations and the communities they serve.
SCSO Deputies and other agencies patrol, assist with evacuation orders and man roadblocks, while Fire personnel work on removing hazards so the area can be reopened to repopulation activities.
SCOFMP Fire Info – This organization is all about the South Central Oregon Fire Management Partnership, an interagency fire management program that provides wildland fire service to south central Oregon.
OREGON OSFM – An update was provided by this agency, on how there were three Oregon Task Forces mobilized on this incident. They were from Clackamas, Linn, and Marion Counties and went straight to work on Sunday.
SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT – Members representing CAL OES and the SFFF Local 798 were deployed on this incident assisting with the mitigation of structure protection and saving lives, as well as natural resources.
FIRIS – OES Intel 24 assisted with fire mapping, a great and critical tool for Fire Officials.
NOAA – The GOES17, captured the fire’s explosive growth on August 1, 2022, and was a key ingredient in assisting Fire Officials with mapping and satellite imagery.
NORCAL UNITED WAY – Assistance is provided by this non-profit organization.
MONTECITO FIRE – The Fire Department deployed several members to staff E391 as part of a strike team with CSFPD, SBCFirePIO, LompocCityFire, and SMFDHQ.
SANTA MARIA FIRE – Members staffed E305 and were under BC2 which had been deployed on this incident for the last 12 days, returned this week back into their service area for some much-needed rest!
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS
A significant weather event took place on August 2, 2022, with a severe thunderstorm hitting the area, causing firefighters to be stuck in violent flash flooding and debris flows, making fire suppression and containment efforts more difficult.
Those who were in or visibly viewed the flash flooding hitting the Klamath River, also saw a large number of fish killed.
A puppy was saved from a fire-impacted area.
A longtime lookout, Kathy Shoopman with the Klamath National Forest lost her life while inside her home had been impacted in the Klamath River area. She had been a lookout since 1974, when she began her career at Baldy Mountain, west of Happy Camp. (article here –> https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/p/mckinney-fire-claims-another-life)
This has been stated, that this is the largest fire and deadliest incident in all of 2022.
#McKinneyFire #KlamathNationalForestFires #KNFfires2022 #CAwildfires
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