Mendocino Complex blaze is now second largest in California history

SAN FRANCISCO-- The relentless wall of flame north of Clear Lake known as the Mendocino Complex Fire has grown into the second largest fire in California history, outpacing 15 other conflagrations that have blanketed the skies with smoke, Cal Fire officials said Monday.

The monstrous Ranch and River fires, which started northeast of Ukiah and near Hopland, have combined into a single incident called a complex. The Mendocino Complex has scorched 273,664 acres in Mendocino, Lake and Colusa counties, said Jonathan Cox, the Cal Fire battalion chief for Northern California.

It is part of an unprecedented series of large, deadly and destructive fires that have raged through California over the past two years, exposing astonished firefighting crews to things rarely if ever seen before, including pyrocumulus clouds reaching into the stratosphere and powerful fire tornadoes.

The good news is that the Mendocino Complex Fire, which started July 27 and is 30 percent contained, is moving north through largely uninhabited areas toward Glenn County, Cox said.

That is little comfort to firefighters considering how the volatile blaze has blown up in the past, gobbling up 55,000 acres on Saturday alone. It has burned more than 6,600 acres since Sunday and could, if it continues, wrest the ignominious title of largest fire in California history from the Thomas Fire, which burned more than 281,000 acres in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties last year.

``That's indicative of how explosive the fire conditions are right now,'' Cox said. ``You are talking about hundreds of miles of open fire line in the remote, steep inaccessible areas, which are the most difficult to grab containment in.''

More than 14,000 firefighters are currently battling flames across the state. So far, wildfires this year have burned 629,000 acres, almost five times the average amount of land burned in California to date. Four of the top 10 most destructive fires and five of the top 20 deadliest fires in recorded state history occurred in 2017 and 2018.

Cox said the state is experiencing higher temperatures day and night and less rain and snow, which, in turn, leads to dry vegetation.

``Over half of the most deadly and destructive and large fires in California have occurred over the past 10 years,'' Cox said. `` We're looking at long-term trends that are alarming for us, especially how quickly they are burning and how much damage they are causing and how deadly they are. It would not be an overstatement to say this is unprecedented.''

The other major fires burning in California are:

The Carr Fire, near Redding, which has consumed 163,207 acres and is 45 percent contained. It is burning northward through steep, mountainous terrain with heavy timber along the Shasta-Trinity county line. The fire, which started July 23, killed six people and a seventh person, a PG&E lineman, died in a crash while restoring lost power to the area. More than 1,000 residences have burned. It is the sixth most destructive, 13th most deadly and 12th largest fire in California history.

The Ferguson Fire has burned 91,502 acres and is 38 percent contained. It forced the evacuations of Yosemite National Park, where smoke is still blotting out the sun. Park officials have indefinitely extended closures of Yosemite Valley, Wawona, and the Mariposa and Merced redwood groves. Firefighters kept the blaze from growing overnight Sunday and managed to bolster protection around Wawona and the Mariposa Grove. The park's three western entrances -- highways 120, 140 and 41 are closed. However, the vast northern part of the park, including Tuolumne Meadows and Tioga Pass, remains open.

The Eel Fire, 10 miles east of Covelo, in Mendocino County, is 60 percent contained. U.S. Forest Service fire managers lifted all evacuation advisories in the region Monday. More than 140 firefighters have been battling the 972-acre fire.

Meanwhile, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District is extending an air quality advisory through Thursday as a result of smoke from the Mendocino Complex Fire and other wildfires. The district said Spare the Air alerts could be called mid-week if air quality exceeds federal standards.