Properties Burn, Firefighters Wage Determined Battle With Dixie Fireplace In Indian Falls – CBS San Francisco
INDIAN FALLS (CBS SF) – Propelled by tinder-dry, drought-stricken trees and scrub, a wall of flames from the angry Dixie Fire roared through the town of Indian Falls, Plumas County, on Saturday night, leaving a devastating trail of charred vehicles that burned houses and destroyed homes Dreams.
The devastation occurred on the eastern edge of the 190,625 acre conflagration that devastated Plumas County for a week. Thousands have been evicted from their homes in rural wilderness communities across the county.
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The Dixie Fire merged with the Fly Fire – reported at 4,300 acres and 5% containment – overnight on the eastern edge of the massive flame.
The #DixieFire East Zone Morning Fire Behavior Video Update for July 25th from @USFSPlumas #Greenville #CrescentMills #Taylorsville #IndianValleyhttps: //t.co/b3Li8YShMv
– CDE Office of Learning Environments (@CDEFacilities) July 25, 2021
While the images of Indian Falls were terrifying, there were victories too when the fire department was able to save some buildings from the fire. Buildings also burned in the rural town of Paxton.
Photo Gallery: Wall of Flames Burns Homes in Indian Falls
The Dixie fire, which began on July 14, burned in a remote area with restricted access and hampered firefighters’ efforts as it moved east, firefighters said.
It has triggered evacuation orders in several small communities and along the west bank of Lake Almanor, a popular retreat. But on Saturday it marched east with such intensity and speed that the firefighters had to retreat to safe havens.
Dixie fire. Click on the map to enlarge it
“The threats and risks associated with this fire are very real,” said Mike Minton, Commander of Cal Incident Team 2. “We are observing fire behavior, conditions and fuel conditions that are not common in this area. The rapid increase in fires we are seeing is very real – we saw that today at Greenville ‘Y’. It is very extreme fire behavior, which essentially meant that the fire fighters had to retreat to safe areas and allow this fire front to pass through. “
Other communities, including Taylorsville, Greenville, Twain, Crescent Mills, and Homes in Butterfly Valley, were also threatened by the March of Fire eastward.
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Mandatory evacuation orders were issued for Genesee Valley North, East Indian Valley and Grizzly Mountain on Sunday.
Among those who have been driven from their homes by the fire is Kylie Ojers, hoping the flames will spare their home.
“We were evacuated on Monday,” she said. “It was more than 20 miles away and now it’s only four miles from our house … It’s going straight towards our house.”
William Helt was also evicted from his home.
“It was raining ashes, it was just a dark sky, everyone had this troubled, ominous feeling, you know it was, you could tell there was panic,” he said of his exodus from the fire zone. “I was just hoping there would be a house to go back to.”
During an update of the fire Saturday night, Plumas County Sheriff Todd Johns asked residents to heed the call to evacuate.
“The fire is up on the ridge now (near Taylorsville),” he said, pointing to the rapid eastern growth on the map on Saturday. “You know how steep the mountains are behind you. If you haven’t, I highly recommend evacuating if you live on Arlington Road in Taylorsville. The fire activity at this point was insane. It’s extreme, most of the time it was unpredictable. “
“I ask the people who live and want to stay in Taylorsville to reconsider this and leave the area.”
On Sunday morning the fire was 21% contained, but those numbers seemed to be adjusting hourly as the fire spread aggressively.
5,022 firefighters were involved in the battle and 10,721 buildings were threatened.
The weather forecast for Sunday included the possibility of lightning and heavy brief rains. These gusty conditions will also create extreme wind behavior along the fire front.
“I wish I had better news,” Cal Fire meteorologist Julia Ruthford said Saturday night. “I know this is a pretty bad weather forecast. But that’s what we got. “
MORE NEWS: Dixie Fire grows to 190,625 acres; 21% included
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