Park fire explodes in Northern California. 45,000-acre wildfire during evacuations near Chico

A fire in Northern California broke out Thursday and spread to more than 110,000 acres, the largest wildfire in California this year, spanning two counties. Residents were ordered to evacuate areas north of Chico.

Firefighters have contained just 3% of the 45,550-acre Park Fire burning across Butte and Tehama County after sparks flew Wednesday in open spaces at Upper Bidwell Park on the outskirts of Chico. More than 216 personnel are battling the flames that have destroyed buildings as Incident Management Team 3 was assigned to take command later this morning.

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office ordered evacuations of areas around Musty Buck Ridge as winds fanned the flames toward Cohasset, a community of 900 residents. Winds gusted to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph, in Upper Bidwell Park around 8 p.m. Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.

Firefighters and residents scrambled to dodge the flames as the blaze made Cohasset Road impassable. Authorities led a group of 20 vehicles uphill toward Campbellville to safety. Another 80 vehicles were led by trucks on small logging roads in the Sierra Pacific Industries forests, according to radio reports reviewed Wednesday night by The Sacramento Bee. Cameras operated by PG&E in the AlertCalifornia wildfire monitoring network showed flames devouring a communications tower along Richardson Springs Road as flames raced through river canyons and over mountain ridges. Transmission went out moments later.

The flames reached 6,465 acres around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, but had grown more than seven times that size by Thursday morning. The fire’s rapid spread was due in part to the fire’s encroachment on hard-to-reach areas, said Capt. Dan Collins, a spokesman for Cal Fire and the Butte County Fire Department.

Applying ground resources to those heavily forested areas proved to be a “challenge,” especially as flames charred areas with little to no fire history, Collins said. The vegetation provided plenty of fuel for embers to ignite, especially as high temperatures raged, he said. Collins did not have a total number of structures that had burned.

According to the National Weather Service, wind gusts up to 21 mph (34 km/h) are possible in Chico on Thursday, with an expected high of 102 degrees Fahrenheit (39 degrees Celsius).

The Butte County Sheriff’s Office placed the following zones under evacuation orders: 120, 149, 150-A, 250, 251-253, 260, 261, 262, 265, 266, 268, 269, 271, 311, 312, 317 and 318. It includes areas of Forest Ranch, Cohasset and Carpenter Ridges. The area also includes the Chico Municipal Airport.

In Butte County, the following zones were under evacuation warnings: 252 and 253, 273, 314, 315 and 316.

The Tehama County Sheriff’s Office ordered zones 736, 854, 856, 858, 882, 882-A and 882-B to leave the area. Residents of zones 726, 728, 732, 734 and 852 were issued an evacuation warning.

An evacuation center was set up at Neighborhood Church, 2801 Notre Dame Blvd. in Chico. Small animals can be taken to a shelter at 2279 Del Oro Ave., in Oroville, and large animals can be taken to safety at Camelot Equestrian Park, 1985 Clark Road in Oroville.

The California Highway Patrol office in Susanville closed Highway 32 at Highway 36 because of the fire, with no estimated time for reopening. Additional resources from Northern California are expected to travel to the region to help extinguish the flames, Cal Fire said.

The cause is under investigation, Cal Fire said.

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