2019 California wildfires
Smoke from the Kincade Fire on October 24 as viewed from GOES-17
Statistics[1]
Total fires7,860
Total area259,823 acres (105,147 ha)
Impacts
Deaths3
Non-fatal injuries22
DamageUS$163 million (suppression efforts)[2]
Season
← 2018
2020 →

The 2019 California wildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned across the U.S. state of California as part of the 2019 wildfire season. By the end of the year, according to Cal Fire and the US Forest Service, 7,860 fires were recorded, totaling an estimated of 259,823 acres (105,147 hectares) of burned land.[1] These fires caused 22 injuries, 3 fatalities, and damaged or destroyed 732 structures.[3] The 2019 California fire season was less active than that of the two previous years (2017 and 2018), which set records for acreage, destructiveness, and deaths.

In late October, the Kincade Fire became the largest fire of the year, burning 77,758 acres (31,468 ha) in Sonoma County by November 6.

Massive preemptive public safety power shutoff events in 2019 were controversial. Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric preemptively shut off power to 800,000 electric customers to reduce the risk of wildfires by preventing electrical arcing in high winds from their above-ground power lines.[4][5] While large areas were without power for days, people in fire danger areas had trouble getting information, and life support equipment would not work without backup power.[6]

Early projections

Fire behavioral experts and climatologists warned that heavy rains from months early in the year had produced an excess of vegetation that would become an abundance of dry fuel later in the year as the fire season gets underway.[7] According to the US Forest Service and US Department of the Interior officials, early projections indicated that the fire season would possibly be worse than the year prior, stating that "if we're lucky, this year will simply be a challenging one." This assessment was written on the basis of noting that the state has recently been seeing consistently destructive fires more often than ever before.[8]

Wildfires

The following is a list of fires that burned more than 1,000 acres (400 ha), or produced significant structural damage or casualties:

Name County Acres Start date Containment date Notes Ref
Refuge Kern 2,500 May 7 May 9 1 structure destroyed [9]
Boulder San Luis Obispo 1,127 June 5 June 5 [10]
Sand Yolo 2,512 June 8 June 17 7 structures destroyed, 2 injuries [11][12]
West Butte Sutter 1,300 June 8 June 10 [13][14]
McMillan San Luis Obispo 1,764 June 12 June 14 [13][15]
Lonoak Monterey 2,546 June 25 June 26 Downed PG&E power line was the cause[16] [17]
Rock Stanislaus 2,422 June 25 June 27 [18]
Cow Inyo, Tulare 1,975 July 25 October 11 Caused by lightning strike [19]
Springs Mono 4,840 July 26 October 7 Caused by lightning strike [20]
Tucker Modoc 14,150 July 28 August 15 Unintentionally caused by vehicular traffic along California State Route 139[21][22] [23][24]
W-1 McDonald Lassen 1,020 August 8 August 11 Caused by lightning strike [25][26]
Gaines Mariposa 1,300 August 16 August 20 [27]
Mountain Shasta 600 August 22 August 26 14 buildings destroyed, 7 damaged and 3 people injured [28]
Long Valley Lassen 2,438 August 24 August 27 [29]
R-1 Ranch Lassen 3,380 August 28 September 5 Caused by lightning strike [30]
Tenaja Riverside 1,926 September 4 September 14 [31]
Walker Plumas 54,608 September 4 September 25 9 structures destroyed [32]
Taboose Inyo 10,296 September 4 November 21 Caused by lightning strike [33]
Lime Siskiyou 1,872 September 4 September 19 Caused by lightning strike [34][35]
Middle Trinity 1,339 September 5 October 5 Caused by lightning strike [36]
Red Bank Tehama 8,838 September 5 September 13 Caused by lightning strike; 2 buildings destroyed [37]
South Tehama 5,332 September 5 October 11 Caused by lightning strike [38][39]
Lone Modoc 5,737 September 5 September 13 Caused by lightning strike [40][41]
Springs Mono 4,840 September 6 September 23 Caused by lightning strike [42][43]
Briceburg Mariposa 5,563 October 6 October 24 1 structure destroyed [44][45]
Sandalwood Riverside 1,011 October 10 October 14 Trash in a garbage truck caught fire and spread to nearby brush
74 structures destroyed, 16 structures damaged, 2 civilian fatalities		 [46][47]
Caples El Dorado 3,435 October 10 November 1 Caused by a controlled burn that went out of control [48]
Saddleridge Los Angeles 8,799 October 10 October 31 Unconfirmed cause, but reported that high-voltage SCE transmission line malfunctioned near point of origin
25 structures destroyed, 88 structures damaged, 1 civilian fatality, 8 firefighter injuries		 [49][50]
Kincade Sonoma 77,758 October 23 November 6 Caused by electrical transmission lines located northeast of Geyserville owned and operated by PG&E[51]
374 structures destroyed, 40 structures damaged, 0 reported deaths, 2 firefighters injured		 [52][53][54][55][56]
Tick Los Angeles 4,615 October 24 October 31 22 structures destroyed, 27 structures damaged [57]
Getty Los Angeles 745 October 28 November 6 Caused by a tree branch that fell on a power line during high winds
12 homes destroyed, 5 homes damaged		 [58][59][60]
Easy Ventura 1,806 October 30 November 2 Threatened the area near the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley and 3 buildings were destroyed [61] [62][63][64]
Hillside San Bernardino 200 October 31 November 14 6 homes destroyed, 18 homes damaged [65]
Maria Ventura 9,999 October 31 November 5 Brush fire broke out at around 6:15 p.m. October 31 on South Mountain in Santa Paula[66] [67]
Ranch Tehama 2,534 November 3 November 15 3 injuries, acreage reduced from 3,768 due to better mapping [68][69] [70]
Cave Santa Barbara 3,126 November 25 December 14 Caused by arson,[71] acreage reduced from 4,330 due to better mapping[72][73] [74][75][76]

Other fires

Three people were injured during the Moose Fire (August 12–17).[77] Two people were injured and four structures were destroyed during the Country Fire (September 3–6).[78] Four people were injured during the Lopez Fire (September 21–27),[79] and one during the Electra Fire (September 25).[80] A small brush fire ignited in Pacific Palisades in Los Angeles County on October 21. The fire burned 42 acres (17 hectares) within a few hours, forcing the evacuation of 200 homes.[81] Three firefighters suffered injuries, while one civilian was treated for respiratory illness.[81][82]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "2019 Incident Archive". CalFire. State of California. 2020. Archived from the original on September 10, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  2. ^ National Large Incident Year-to-Date Report (PDF) (Report). Geographic Area Coordination Center. October 21, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 22, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  3. ^ "2019 Fire Season". www.fire.ca.gov. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
  4. ^ Morris, J.D; Cabanatuan, Michael (October 9, 2019). "PG&E: Massive power shut-off to hit 800,000 customers, could extend nearly a week". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  5. ^ "Wildfires rage in California as residents scramble without power". CBS News. October 10, 2019. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  6. ^ "Wildfires rage in California as residents scramble without power". CBS News. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  7. ^ Sahagun, Louis; Serna, Joseph (June 14, 2019). "One in 4 Californians live in a 'high risk' wildfire area. Is the state ready for another fire season?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  8. ^ Kaufman, Ellie (June 13, 2019). "Wildfires are 'burning longer' and 'harder to control,' officials warn". CNN. CNN. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  9. ^ "Refuge Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. May 9, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  10. ^ "Boulder Fire now burning 1,127 acres - 100% contained in San Luis Obispo County". SFGate. June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  11. ^ "Sand Fire grows overnight near Davis". KTVU. June 9, 2019. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  12. ^ "Sand Fire". CAL FIRE (Incident Information). State of California. June 17, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  13. ^ a b Ding, Jaimie; Bobrowsky, Meghan (June 8, 2019). "Where are fires burning in Northern California? Yolo County's Sand Fire is largest". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  14. ^ "Wildfire contained near Sutter Buttes". Chico Enterprise-Record. June 10, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  15. ^ "Cal Fire SLO Tweet". CALFIRE SLO. June 12, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  16. ^ Copitch, Josh (June 27, 2019). "PG&E power lines cause of wildfire near King City: Cal Fire". KSBW. Retrieved July 5, 2019.
  17. ^ "Lonoak Fire". CAL FIRE (Incident Information). State of California. June 27, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
  18. ^ "Rock Fire". CAL FIRE (Incident Information). State of California. July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 5, 2019.
  19. ^ "Cow Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 9, 2019.
  20. ^ "Springs Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. August 11, 2019.
  21. ^ Bansagi, Natasa (July 31, 2019). "Tucker Fire in Modoc County unintentionally ignited by vehicular traffic". KRCR.
  22. ^ Díaz, Alexa (July 30, 2019). "Tucker fire grows to 14,000 acres, becoming largest blaze in California this year". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  23. ^ "Tucker Fire". CAL FIRE. State of California. July 30, 2019. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  24. ^ "Tucker Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. July 31, 2019.
  25. ^ "W-1 McDonald Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. August 11, 2019.
  26. ^ "W-1 McDonald Fire Information". CAL FIRE. August 12, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  27. ^ "Gaines Fire Information". fire.ca.gov. August 16, 2019.
  28. ^ "Mountain Fire". CAL FIRE (Incident Information). State of California. August 24, 2019. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  29. ^ "Long Valley Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. August 25, 2019.
  30. ^ "R-1 Ranch Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 1, 2019.
  31. ^ "Tenaja Fire Information". fire.ca.gov. September 9, 2019.
  32. ^ "Walker Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 4, 2019.
  33. ^ "Taboose Fire Information". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 9, 2019.
  34. ^ "Lime Fire Information". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 9, 2019.
  35. ^ "Fire Tracker: Lime Fire". San Francisco Chronicle. September 13, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  36. ^ "Middle Fire". InciWeb. September 18, 2019.
  37. ^ "Red Bank Fire Information". fire.ca.gov. September 5, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  38. ^ "South Fire Information". fire.ca.gov. September 9, 2019.
  39. ^ "Fire Tracker: South Fire". San Francisco Chronicle. October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  40. ^ "Lone Fire Information". inciweb.nwcg.gov. September 9, 2019.
  41. ^ "Fire Tracker: Lone Fire". San Francisco Chronicle. September 13, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  42. ^ "Springs Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. October 2, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  43. ^ "Fire Tracker: Springs Fire". San Francisco Chronicle. September 23, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  44. ^ "Briceburg Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  45. ^ "Full Containment Reached On Briceburg Fire".
  46. ^ "Sandalwood Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  47. ^ Doug Stanglin and Chris Woodyard (October 12, 2019). "Evacuations lifted as Los Angeles fire threat eases; 2 confirmed dead in Sandalwood blaze". USAToday. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
  48. ^ "Caples Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov.
  49. ^ "Saddleridge Brush Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. October 23, 2019. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  50. ^ "Saddle Ridge Fire Incident Report".
  51. ^ Fusek, Maggie (July 17, 2020). "Kincade Fire Caused By PG&E Equipment, Cal Fire Says". Patch. Cal Fire investigators determined the Sonoma County wildfire that destroyed 374 homes and structures was traced to PG&E equipment.
  52. ^ "Kincade Fire: 2,000 people evacuated, 16,000 acres burned". October 24, 2019.
  53. ^ Morris, J. D. (October 24, 2019). "Kincade Fire in Sonoma County grows to 10,000 acres, evacuation orders expanded". SFChronicle.com.
  54. ^ "Kincade Fire | Welcome to CAL FIRE". fire.ca.gov. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  55. ^ "Kincade Fire now 30 percent contained, grows to 76,825 acres overnight - SFGate". sfgate.com. October 30, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  56. ^ Kovner, Guy (October 30, 2019). "Kincade fire, biggest in county history, has scorched an area 3x the size of Santa Rosa". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. Archived from the original on November 14, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  57. ^ "Tick Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. October 29, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  58. ^ "Getty Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. October 29, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  59. ^ "Getty Fire Burns 618 Acres, Destroys Multiple Homes After Erupting in Sepulveda Pass". ktla.com. October 28, 2019.
  60. ^ John Bacon and Kristin Lam (October 30, 2019). "Raging Easy Fire threatens Reagan Library as Getty, Kincade fires continue assault on California". USA Today. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  61. ^ "SoCal Edison: power line may have started fire". KERO. October 31, 2019.
  62. ^ "Easy Fire". CalFire. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  63. ^ "abc7 live updates". November 2019.
  64. ^ "Ronald Reagan Presidential Library escapes damage from Easy Fire amid 'extreme red flag warning'". msn.com.
  65. ^ "Hillside Fire Information - InciWeb the Incident Information System". inciweb.nwcg.gov.
  66. ^ Diskin, Megan. "Edison turned power back on just before Maria Fire started". Ventura County Star.
  67. ^ "Maria Fire | Welcome to CAL FIRE". fire.ca.gov. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  68. ^ Robinson, Adam (November 7, 2019). "Ranch Fire's acreage changes due to better mapping, increased containment". KRCR. Archived from the original on November 8, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  69. ^ "Ranch Fire recalculated to 2,500 acres, containment increases". November 8, 2019.
  70. ^ "Ranch Fire Incident Report".
  71. ^ Nguyen, Julia (November 25, 2020). "Officials: Cave Fire was set intentionally". KEYT. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
  72. ^ "UPDATE: Acreage burned in Cave Fire reduced". KSBY. November 27, 2019.
  73. ^ FIRE, CAL [@CAL_FIRE] (November 28, 2019). "#CaveFire near Highway 154 in Santa Barbara County is 3,126 acres and 40% contained. Acreage reduced due to accurate mapping. Unified Command: @LosPadresNF @SBCFireInfo @CALFIRE_SLO Evacuation Information: https://twitter.com/sbsheriff https://fire.ca.gov/incidents/ pic.twitter.com/BJa6z3YLYP" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  74. ^ "Cave Fire (No Longer a CAL FIRE Incident) Report". Archived from the original on December 21, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  75. ^ Brest, Jessica (December 1, 2019). "UPDATE: Cave Fire now 90% contained, 154 reopening Sunday".
  76. ^ Minsky, Dave (December 2, 2019). "Cave fire 90% contained; Hwy 154 reopens". Santa Maria Times.
  77. ^ "Moose Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. August 18, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  78. ^ "Country Fire". California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. September 6, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  79. ^ "Lopez Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. September 30, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  80. ^ "Electra Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. September 25, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  81. ^ a b "Palisades Brush Fire". Los Angeles Fire Department. October 25, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  82. ^ Hannah Fry, Alejandra Reyes-Belarde, Colleen Shalby, Sonja Sharp, and Leila Miller (October 21, 2019). "Evacuations are lifted after brush fire burns near Pacific Palisades homes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 29, 2019.((cite news)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

External links

2019 wildfires
California wildfires
Largest California wildfires
Categories