Bagley Fire Update 8-29-12: 31,320 acres, 24% containment

FOR THE LATEST ON THE BAGLEY FIRE CLICK THE HOME TAB AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE

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Thankfully, I missed my prediction of 5000 acres burned yesterday, but it did burn half that amount, 2550 more acres. There is a lot of news below about the future management of this fire.

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Incident Overview

Image options: [ Enlarge ] [ Full Size ]<——-Click here for map of fire

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Bagley Fire Update – August 29, 2012, 8 a.m.

(Editor’s Note: Bagley Fire Information Phone Number: (800) 923-7316; Temporary number during move (leave message): 530-710-8627; InciWeb: http://www.inciweb.org/incident/3188/; Twitter: https://twitter.com/info ciimt1)

Big Bend, CA – The Bagley Fire is now being managed under Unified Command with CalFire . Federal and State resources are being managed under a single, coordinated incident command structure to protect both National Forest and private lands. Today the Incident Command Post will be relocated from Big Bend to McCloud to better serve firefighters as fire activity moves north. Crews remaining on the fire’s south flank will continue to be supported at Big Bend.

Last night, crews made continued progress to strengthen containment lines on the fire’s east flank from Dutchman Peak south to Iron Canyon Reservoir. Fire lines are holding from Iron Canyon Reservoir south to Bagley Flats. Today crews continue to improve containment lines along the fire’s southern and western flank from Bagley Flats toward North Fork Mountain. On the fire’s north flank, primary containment lines are being improved from the McCloud River east to the Dutchman Peak area along Forest Road 11. Several contingency lines are also being prepared and improved.

CalFire has initiated construction of contingency containment lines on the fire’s north flank to protect private lands and the critical power transmission lines. Lines are in place and being improved between Grizzly Peak and McCloud Reservoir. Additional containment lines are being planned west of McCloud Reservoir.

The incident management team is working closely with cooperators including PG&E, Western Area Power Authority (WAPA), the timber industry, Nature Conservancy and other private interests with lands and infrastructure that could be impacted by the fire.

Fire Behavior and Smoke:

The fire remains active, conditions are still critical and capable of producing extreme fire behavior where winds align with canyons. The fire will continue to move northeast towards containment lines along Forest Road 11. Smoke is expected to hang over the fire area for the early part of the day. As smoke lifts later in the day fire activity will increase and unburned islands of vegetation are expected to burn and produce large columns of smoke, as has occurred over the past several days.

Public Safety

Smoke will continue to pose health concerns for the public. Residents are encouraged to visit the “Protect Yourself from Smoke” website for smoke protection information at http://www.cdc.gov/Features/Wildfires/. Local air quality conditions and forecasts are available at http://airnow.gov/index.cfm action=airnow.main.

For tips on how to prepare for a potential evacuation and what to do if you are evacuated, residents in and near evacuation areas are encouraged to visit the “Ready, Set, Go” website at: http://www.inciweb.org/incident/article/3052/15480/.

In the interest of firefighter and public safety, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest has issued closure areas due to the fire’s growth. The closures will remain in place until the area is safe for the public to enter. Please see the Forest Orders and closure maps on InciWeb (address above).

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Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Saturday August 18th, 2012 approx. 10:07 AM
Location	4 miles west of Big Bend CA
Incident Commander	Mcgowan

Current Situation

Total Personnel	1,354
Size	31,321 acres
Percent Contained	24%
Estimated Containment Date	Wednesday September 05th, 2012 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber litter and understory, brush and hardwood stands intermixed. Fire area has conifer, brush, hardwood stands, logging slash, and pine plantations. High live to dead ratio in brush exists and conifer stands have a heavy loading of dead/down material.
Fire Behavior	Active fire behavior with runs in heavy timber and brush fuels and moderate rates of spread, torching, spotting and roll-out.
Significant Events	Forest road closures remain in effect. California Interagency Incident Management Team 1 (McGowan) has assumed command of the Bagley Fire and working in Unified Command with CalFire.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Continue to scout, construct, burnout and hold direct and indirect line.
Growth Potential	Extreme
Terrain Difficulty	Extreme

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	4 mph SW
Temperature	63 degrees
Humidity	55%

Bagley Fire Update 8-26-12: 15,000 acres, 28% Containment, 2 miles from town !!New Update!! 21,000 acres, 20% Containment

FOR THE LATEST UPDATE CLICK ON THE HOME TAB AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE

Today’s Update: Bagley Fire Update 8-27-12: 24,400 acres 20% containment <–click here for details

Yesterday afternoon we saw the fire really blow up, looked like we were going to be evacuated. If you go to This Site, and click on the Hybrid link on the top map, you will see the fire has burned around Oak Mountain. Nothing between us and the fire now but the river, and that’s not going to even slow it down. Hope they make some good progress today as we have HAD some clouds and possibly some showers in the area. There is a meeting at the Community Center tonight at 6:00 pm for updates from the front line, if we don’t get evacuated first.

Here’s some good news from Jim Mackensen, our local information officer.

Good Morning Big Bend. So here’s a little more fire information. As you obviously saw last night the fire made a big push to the north. Most of it was interior drainages that got into alinement with the winds. The lines on the south side between Bagley Flat and Wheeler ranch are holding and saw little growth. On the east side between the dam and Bagley Flat we has some spots get across the line but they have all been caught.
We will have more information for everyone tonight at the meeting at 6 pm at the community club.

Here’s a little more good news from the INCI website:

Bagley Fire Update

Incident: Bagley Wildfire
Released: 3 hrs. ago

The Bagley Fire is continuing to spread towards the northeast. There is no danger from the fire to the communities of McCloud, Mt. Shasta, Dunsmuir, Big Bend, or any of the communities along Hwy. 299. There are no evacuation warning in effect.

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Incident Overview

Image options: [ Enlarge ] [ Full Size ]<——This map is not up to date. Fire jumped the eastern boundry and burned around Oak Mountain, another mile closer to Big Bend.

Firefighters continue to battle the Bagley Fire burning in a remote area of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, approximately seven miles west of the community of Big Bend, CA, and 17 miles south of McCloud, CA. on both public and private land.

The fire has grown to just over 20,875 acres, and is 20 percent contained. The fire is burning in an area containing heavy concentrations of dry timber, brush fields and steep slopes. Existing conditions along with overnight weather, increased fire activity within the perimeter. Today firefighters will continue with the construction of indirect fireline and firing operations when appropriate.

The construction of indirect firelines is a tactic implemented in order to reduce the amount of flammable material between the fires edge and control lines. At this time no structures are immediately threatened; however, high-value private timberlands and electrical power infrastructure are at risk.

The Shasta-Trinity National Forest has placed an Emergency Closure Order for all land in the fire area. Please see the closure map of the affected areas.

All Shasta-Trinity National Forest recreation facilities within the closure area, including Deadlun and Madrone Campgrounds are closed. The PG&E operated Hawkin’s Landing Campground is also closed. Highway 299 East, Big Bend Road and Forest Service 34N17 Road (commonly known as Fender’s Ferry Road) remain open. Motorists are advised to drive with caution.

Additional Information: Additional fire information can be obtained by calling (800) 923-7316.

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Saturday August 18th, 2012 approx. 10:07 AM
Location	7 miles west of Big Bend CA
Incident Commander	Whitcome

Current Situation

Total Personnel	1,192
Size	20,875 acres
Percent Contained	20%
Estimated Containment Date	Wednesday September 05th, 2012 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber litter and understory, brush and hardwood stands intermixed. Fire area has conifer, brush, hardwood stands, logging slash, and pine plantations. High live to dead ratio in brush exists and conifer stands have a heavy loading of dead/down material.
Fire Behavior	Sustained runs, torching, spotting
Significant Events	West side of fire made a run in the West Fork drainage from Squaw Creek drainage. Firefighters are assessing the changed situation.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Gather intel on the changed situation, implement contingency plan and secure flanks.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	Extreme

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	25 mph SW
Temperature	65 degrees
Humidity	40-50%

Bagley Fire Update 8-21-12, 7:30 am: 3770 Acres, 0% Containment

!!LATEST BAGLEY FIRE UPDATE HERE. !! 8-22 12

This fire was estimated at 1000 acres yesterday morning, 230 acres the day before. ZERO percent containment. If the wind shifts, we could be in a bit of trouble…

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Image options: [ Enlarge ] [ Full Size ]<—-Click here if no image visible

Acres: 3,770

Percent Containment: 0%

Estimated Containment: August 30, 2012

Resources: Hand Crews: 10

Helicopters: 2

Dozers: 6

Water tenders: 6

Injuries: None

Fireline to Build: 25 miles

Total personnel assigned to the incident: 312

Additional Information: Call (530) 710-8627

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Saturday August 18th, 2012 approx. 10:07 AM
Location	7 miles west of Big Bend CA
Incident Commander	Whitcome

Current Situation

Total Personnel	312
Size	3,770 acres
Estimated Containment Date	Thursday August 30th, 2012 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Timber litter and understory, brush and hardwood stands intermixed. Conifer stands have a heavy loading of dead and down material. High live to dead ratio in brush exists and conifer stands have a heavy loading of dead/down material. No historical fire history within the fire area.
Fire Behavior	Nighttime fire behavior showed actively burning heavy timber and brush fuels with moderate rates of spread and isolated single tree torching.
Significant Events	NorCal Team 1 (Whitcome) was in-briefed yesterday with USFS Type 3 organization and will assume command of the fire today (8/21) at 0600.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Scout indirect fireline location. Continue direct and indirect line construction in all divisions, prepare logistical support for fireline suppression operations.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	High
Remarks	Bagley and Fork fires were managed under the Bagley Complex (Incident# CA-SHF-002735) and Bagley fire will now be managed as a single fire under incident #CA-SHF-002744.

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	7 mph E
Temperature	59 degrees
Humidity	25%

Unit Information

Shasta – Trinity National Forest
U.S. Forest Service
3644 Avtech Parkway
Redding, CA 96002

Incident Contact

Fire Information
Phone: 530 710 8627

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6.5 Earthquake Off The Northern California Coast !Updated!

!!  IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR THE QUAKE ON 2-4-10, CLICK HERE !!

At 4:27 this afternoon a 6.5 quake hit 27 miles off the coast of Eureka. That’s a fairly big shaker and we felt it here well over 200 miles inland. There were a few shakers in the 3-4 range in San Francisco earlier this week and the epicenter of this one is at the end of the San Andreas fault where it meets the Pacific and American plates in the Cascadia subduction zone. There have been several aftershocks but no threat of a tsunami.

All the technical details and a map are HERE.

!UPDATE! Some minor damage, injuries and power outages.

Dozens of people suffered minor injuries and thousands lost power.

In Eureka, north of Ferndale, residents of an apartment building were evacuated, and an office building and two other commercial structures in the town of about 26,000 people were declared unsafe for occupancy, according to Humboldt County spokesman Phil Smith-Hanes.

“Our initial reports were that, though this was a pretty decent quake, we survived it well,” Smith-Hanes said, adding that damage assessments would continue Sunday across the county.

Sandra Hall, owner of Antiques and Goodies, said furniture fell over, nearly all her lamps broke and the handful of customers in her store got a big scare. She said it was the most dramatic quake in the 30 years the Eureka store has been open.

“We’ll be having a sale on broken china for those who like to do mosaics,” she said.

More than a dozen aftershocks, some with magnitudes as powerful as 4.5, rumbled for several hours after the initial quake, which had a depth of nearly 10 miles.

More Here

Rush Limbaugh Hospitalized With Chest Pains Updated: Rush Speaks From Hawaii

HONOLULU — Conservative radio talk host Rush Limbaugh was rushed to a Honolulu hospital on Wednesday afternoon with chest pains, sources told KITV.Paramedics responded to the call at 2:41 p.m. at the Kahala Hotel and Resort.

Limbaugh suffered from chest pains, sources said. Paramedics treated him and took him to Queen’s Medical Center in serious condition.He was seen golfing at Waialae Country Club earlier this week. The country club is next to the Kahala Hotel and Resort.The radio show host had been in the islands during the holidays. Coincidentally, his visit comes at a time when two of the nation’s most powerful Democrats, President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, are also staying in Hawaii.

Breaking News, I’ll post more as it comes in.

!Update!

HONOLULU —  Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh was taken to a hospital after suffering chest pains and was resting comfortably Wednesday, his radio program said in a statement.

“Rush was admitted to and is resting comfortably in a Honolulu hospital today after suffering chest pains,” the statement said. “Rush appreciates your prayers and well wishes and will keep you updated via rushlimbaugh.com and on his radio program.”

Kit Carson, Limbaugh’s chief of staff, said he had no further information on Limbaugh’s condition.

He said the 58-year-old left for his usual Christmas vacation on Dec. 23 and is due to return to his show on Jan. 4. Carson didn’t have any information on whether that schedule would change.

Further updates can be found HERE

Money Not Motive In Burney US Bank Standoff !Update! Shooter Identified

The latest from  The Record Searchlight.

!!UPDATE!! The shooter has been identified as Gregorio Enrique Estrada, 46, of Chico. Details Here

Dr. Timothy Kersten of Burney leaves US Bank in Burney after being shot in the back of the head at point blank range. Obviously in shock, (or the calmest man I've ever seen) he drove to the Burney Fire Station a few hundred feet down the road and now is in critical condition in a Redding hospital.

Police are calling a 47-year-old Burney man’s shooting spree from inside a Burney bank an orchestrated attack that left them no choice but to fire back.

“This was a clear, calculated ambush situation for officers and deputies,” Redding Police Lt. Scott Mayberry said today at a press conference.

Though many details are still unclear since bank tellers remain traumatized and the two customers the man shot have been in surgery, police say this is what they know:

His pockets stuffed with .50 caliber handgun ammo and a bag filled with dozens of 9 mm rounds, the gunman walked into the Main Street bank around 12:14 p.m. Tuesday.

He pointed a semi-automatic pistol at a customer’s head and pulled the trigger.

The gun misfired.

Still without saying a word, the gunman pulled back the slide on the black 9 mm Smith and Wesson and fired again, shooting Timothy Kersten, 53, of Burney in the mouth.

Remarkably, Kersten didn’t die.

Instead, bleeding from a wound in his neck, the Burney dentist managed to walk out of the bank. Witnesses said later that he appeared calm or in shock.

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Related videos

• Video of Burney bank standoff
• Witnesses describe robbery scene
• Officers leave robbery scene
• Scene of U.S. Bank armed robbery
• Burney man describes shooting

Kersten got into his car and began driving west toward Redding. He was hoping to make it to an emergency room.

He got only as far as the Burney fire station, just a few hundred feet down the street. Firefighters took him to a Redding hospital, where he was listed in serious (critical as of 12-17) condition today.

Shooting Kersten was just the start.

Next the gunman walked up to a teller and told her to give him some money.

She did.

Then he asked the terrified woman whether she had activated the bank’s hold up alarm.

When she said no, he told her to push it.

At some point around the time the alarm went off, the gunman fired again at another customer, Gloria Brown, 64, hitting her in the wrist with a 9 mm bullet.

She would lie bleeding for three hours until two sheriff’s deputies took the gunman down.

Like Kersten, Brown is listed in serious condition today.

The first officer to arrive in response to the bank alarm was Shasta County Sheriff’s Sgt. Marc St. Clair. He got there within minutes.

Shots from the gunman’s silver .50 caliber Smith and Wesson revolver boomed, breaking out the bank’s glass storefront and hitting St. Clair’s truck.

St. Clair immediately called for back-up and dozens of on- and off-duty deputies, Redding police and California Highway Patrol officers flooded the town. They were joined by agents with the U.S. Forest Service, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the FBI.

As action inside the bank escalated, one employee inside was in the middle of a conference call with co-workers at the its Redding office.

The co-workers heard gunshots over the telephone and notified authorities.

The employee on the telephone locked herself in the bank’s ATM room, where she called 911 and gave dispatchers information about how many people were inside the bank and other details.

Meanwhile, as backup and SWAT team members from Redding continued to arrive, the gunman fired at least two more volleys through the front window.

The bullets from the cannon-like .50 caliber ripped two inch entrance holes in the sheet metal bodies of the deputies’s patrol cars.

In total, at least 21 rounds of .50 caliber ammunition were fired. He shot the 9 mm at least 11 times.

SWAT team members were ordered to fire if they had a clear shot that wouldn’t hurt any of the women inside.

The opportunity came after 3 p.m.

Two sheriff’s SWAT deputies saw the suspect through a window. He was moving aggressively toward the women. They fired at him at least three times. One shot hit him in the chest.

SWAT medics, including armed volunteer Dr. Jesse Wells, were among the dozens of officers who responded to the bank.

He treated the gunman’s wound and continued to treat him in the ambulance that drove him to Mercy Medical Center in Redding. The medics also patched up Brown before she was taken to Mayers Memorial Hospital in Fall River Mills.

Bad weather prevented using a helicopter to move the wounded to the hospital.

Officials say it’s doubtful a medical flight would have made much difference to the gunman as his wound appeared to be mortal.

He was pronounced dead Tuesday evening at Mercy.

An autopsy report Tuesday afternoon listed the man’s cause of death as a single shot to his chest.

The gunman’s name hasn’t yet been released, pending notification of family members.

The two deputies who shot the man remain on paid administrative leave, standard procedure in officer-involved shooting cases.

Meanwhile, Redding police, who are handling the investigation, kept several blocks of Highway 299, Main Street, through Burney closed this morning as investigators collected evidence and took photographs in and around the U.S. Bank branch.

One lane of the four-lane road was reopened in each direction about 2 p.m.

Traffic trickled by as many motorists slowed to look at the bullet battered Shasta County Sheriff’s SUV still parked in front of the bank.

Burney residents today talked about Tuesday’s standoff and shooting in the grocery line, at the cafe counter and in front of the deli counter.

The small town an hour’s drive east of Redding was still shaken by the dramatic scene of a SWAT team and the crushing roar of .50 caliber gunfire.

Lisa Wilburn, 19, said the shooting left the town of 3,000 people on edge.

“That was a pretty big thing to happen in Burney,” she said.

Rumors swirled around town about who the gunman might have been and whether he had help.

Sgt. Bruce Bonner of the Redding Police Department, said investigators were taking any tips seriously as they investigated the shooting and robbery, but it appeared this afternoon that the gunman acted alone.

“There is no indication that he came with anyone else,” Bonner said.

Evelyn Jacobs, Northern California regional president for U.S. Bank in Redding, said the tight-knit community has given the three bank employees a remarkable amount of support.

The bank has offered the women counseling, but she said the women are doing remarkably well thanks to the support of family and friends.

“They amaze me,” Jacobs said.

Wow, just wow. I don’t know the two who were shot but have probably seen them in passing in Burney. I wish them a speedy recovery. As for the girls in the bank, whom I’ve known for years, thank God for keeping you safe and I and my wife will see you soon. To the shooter, still unidentified, Rot In Hell, Bastard!

About Time: Investigations Into Global Warming Lies Are Called For

Things are really getting interesting regarding the global warming cult. Sunday I posted this: Main Stream Media Awakens to Global Warming Fraud. And just one day later there are calls for investigations on both sides of ‘the pond’.

The Washington Times also interviewed Senator Inhofe about the surprise revelation from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit (CRU) e-mails over the past few days, especially in how they manipulated data and deliberately hid contradictory information while building their “consensus” on anthropogenic global warming. Inhofe told Melanie Morgan and Jed Babbin that he would call for a Congressional hearing on the e-mails and their impact on the credibility of the AGW movement, especially as it relates to the IPCC and the United Nations:

Ed Morrissey has a lot more at Hot Air

And across the pond Lord Lawson calls for an investigation.

Thousands of emails and documents stolen from the University of East Anglia (UEA) and posted online indicate that researchers massaged figures to mask the fact that world temperatures have been declining in recent years.

This morning Lord Lawson, who has reinvented himself as a prominent climate change sceptic since leaving front line politics, demanded that the apparent deception be fully investigated.

He claimed that the credibility of the university’s world-renowned Climatic Research Unit – and British science – were under threat.

“They should set up a public inquiry under someone who is totally respected and get to the truth,” he told the BBC Radio Four Today programme.

“If there’s an explanation for what’s going on they can make that explanation.”

Around 1,000 emails and 3,000 documents were stolen from UEA computers by hackers last week and uploaded on to a Russian server before circulating on websites run by climate change sceptics.

Some of the correspondence indicates that the manipulation of data was widespread among global warming researchers.

One of the emails under scrutiny, written by Phil Jones, the centre’s director, in 1999, reads: “I’ve just completed Mike’s Nature [the science journal] trick of adding in the real temps to each series for the last 20 years (ie, from 1981 onwards) and from 1961 for Keith’s to hide the decline.”

The Rest Here

!!UPDATE!! CBS has a great article on this. Yes, CBS! Congress May Probe Leaked Global Warming E-Mails

Main Stream Media Awakens to Global Warming Fraud

At least The Washington Post has acknowledged the fraud. And if the liberal leaning WaPo can see it, there is hope. The big question is will the politicians give up the “Golden Goose”? And will Al Gore be prosecuted for the fraud he is?

Electronic files that were stolen from a prominent climate research center and made public last week provide a rare glimpse into the behind-the-scenes battle to shape the public perception of global warming.

While few U.S. politicians bother to question whether humans are changing the world’s climate — nearly three years ago the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded the evidence was unequivocal — public debate persists. And the newly disclosed private exchanges among climate scientists at Britain’s Climate Research Unit of the University of East Anglia reveal an intellectual circle that appears to feel very much under attack, and eager to punish its enemies.

In one e-mail, the center’s director, Phil Jones, writes Pennsylvania State University’s Michael E. Mann and questions whether the work of academics that question the link between human activities and global warming deserve to make it into the prestigious IPCC report, which represents the global consensus view on climate science.

“I can’t see either of these papers being in the next IPCC report,” Jones writes. “Kevin and I will keep them out somehow — even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!”

In another, Jones and Mann discuss how they can pressure an academic journal not to accept the work of climate skeptics with whom they disagree. “Perhaps we should encourage our colleagues in the climate research community to no longer submit to, or cite papers in, this journal,” Mann writes.

“I will be emailing the journal to tell them I’m having nothing more to do with it until they rid themselves of this troublesome editor,” Jones replies.

Patrick Michaels, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute who comes under fire in the e-mails, said these same academics repeatedly criticized him for not having published more peer-reviewed papers.

“There’s an egregious problem here, their intimidation of journal editors,” he said. “They’re saying, ‘If you print anything by this group, we won’t send you any papers.’ “

Mann, who directs Penn State’s Earth System Science Center, said the e-mails reflected the sort of “vigorous debate” researchers engage in before reaching scientific conclusions. “We shouldn’t expect the sort of refined statements that scientists make when they’re speaking in public,” he said.

Christopher Horner, a senior fellow at the libertarian Competitive Enterprise Institute who has questioned whether climate change is human-caused, blogged that the e-mails have “the makings of a very big” scandal. “Imagine this sort of news coming in the field of AIDS research,” he added.

The story of the hacking has ranked among the most popular on Web sites ranging from The Washington Post’s to that of London’s Daily Telegraph. And it has spurred a flood of e-mails from climate skeptics to U.S. news organizations, some likening the disclosure to the release of the Pentagon Papers during Vietnam.

Kevin Trenberth, who heads the Climate Analysis Section at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colo., and wrote some of the pirated e-mails, said it is the implications rather than the content of climate research that make some people uncomfortable.

“It is incontrovertible” that the world is warming as a result of human actions, Trenberth said. “The question to me is what to do.”

“It’s certainly a legitimate question,” he added. “Unfortunately one of the side effects of this is the messengers get attacked.”

In his new book, “Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save the Earth’s Climate,” Stanford University climate scientist Stephen H. Schneider details the intense debate over warming, arguing that it has helped slow the nation’s public policy response.

“I’ve been here on the ground, in the trenches, for my entire career,” writes Schneider, who was copied on one of the controversial e-mails. “I’m still at it, and the battle, while looking more winnable these days, is still not a done deal.”

The Washington Post

More on this article from Ed Morrissey @ Hot Air.

!!UPDATE BELOW!!

CBS has now joined in.

Lil’ Smokey Still Truckin’

Although he’s not moving far from his new home he’s still out there being a bear and doing what a bear does in the woods.

His burned paws long since healed, Li’l Smokey continues to roam the north state’s backcountry.

State scientists picked up the signal from a radio transmitter affixed to the black bear cub Wednesday, the third time he’s been detected since his release on Feb. 5, said Tom Millham, secretary-treasurer for Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care.

Found by a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection firefighter last July near Buckhorn Summit, the young cub had been badly burned by the Moon Fire, one of the lightning-sparked blazes that plagued the north state last summer. He was dubbed Li’l Smokey due to the similarity of his tale to the famed Smokey Bear.

During 6 1/2 months in captivity, he was nursed back to health at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care.

State Department of Fish and Game scientists fitted him with a radio transmitter and tucked him into a man-made den in the Klamath National Forest in Siskiyou County.

Scientists first tracked Li’l Smokey in April, showing the bear had awakened from hibernation and moved five miles from his den. They picked up Li’l Smokey’s signals again about 10 miles from the den in May.

The signal this week showed the bear is in the same general area where he’d been tracked before, Millham said.

He said Li’l Smokey weighed about 90 pounds when he was released and now has likely grown to about 150 pounds.

Source

Lil’ Smokey’s Blog

For more about the Lil’ Smokey story just put ‘lil smokey’ in the search bar up top.

Chalk Fire Update

Taken at the Pit 5 Dam.

Taken at the Pit 5 Dam

To give some perspective as to the size of the fire, in the smoke on the left side of the bottom picture, that little speck about a third of the way up is a double blade ‘copter with a bucket.

Fire officials relied on bulldozers, air tankers and helicopters at the Chalk Fire on Friday to prevent the 6,923-acre blaze from breaching containment lines and closing in on 11 structures.

Lori Mathiesen, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said the Burney-area fire grew about 100 acres from Thursday to Friday and mandatory evacuations remained in effect for 10 residences along Skunk Ridge Road near Big Bend.

River Road remained closed at Pit 5 Dam.

Crews so far have kept the fire within their lines and, if weather permits, more firing operations would be under way this weekend, she said. Windy conditions Thursday and Friday blew embers that created spot fires, but none fell outside the contingency lines, she said.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co.’s Pit 4 powerhouse along the Pit River also was threatened by the fire, officials said.

As of Friday evening, the Chalk Fire had settled at 6,923 acres. The fire is one of 40 started by an Aug. 1 lightning storm.

Fire officials on Friday began releasing some engines and crews for fire duty elsewhere in the state, Cal Fire spokesman Brent Saulsbury said.

The SHU Lightning Complex of fires has burned 17,623 acres, and crews continued their efforts on the Chalk, Cassel (6,097 acres) and Goose (3,949 acres) fires.

The whole complex of fires was 70 percent contained Friday evening with mop-up operations continuing where containment lines have held.

Full containment was expected Sunday.

Nineteen minor injuries have been reported on the fire complex with suppression costs amounting to $26.8 million.

Some 1,580 people are working on the fires, of which 1,332 are Cal Fire personnel.

The 9,356-acre Sugarloaf Fire, part of the Hat Creek Complex to the southeast near Old Station, was reportedly fully contained by Friday morning, and mop-up efforts continued there throughout the day.

Lightning-sparked fires in the Trinity River Management Unit Complex have all been extinguished, but crews continue to monitor hot spots, said Rita Vollmer, a U.S. Forest service spokeswoman.

She said all the TRMU fires were less than 40 acres.

Source

Shasta/Lassen County Wildfire Update 8-7-09

Officials backed off Thursday on their estimate for containment of a series of lightning-sparked fires that has burned more than 14,000 acres in eastern Shasta County.

A day after saying the SHU (Shasta-Trinity Unit) Lightning Complex could be contained by Saturday, state officials now aren’t saying when the fires will be contained.

Told ya so.

Containment means there’s a line around the fire to the point that it’s not expected to grow any larger.

Meanwhile, a barrage of lightning – some 885 strikes – pounded Northern California on Thursday, creating at least a dozen small fires in Shasta-Trinity National Forest.

The lightning strikes were recorded in a 24-hour period ending at 3 p.m. Thursday, the U.S. Forest Service reported.

Most of the lightning activity was concentrated on the west side of the forest, and eight fires were confirmed from Weaverville to Big Bar.

Firefighters contained five of those fires, with a quarter-acre fire being the largest.

Weather permitting, spotter planes will take surveillance flights this morning to see if more fires turn up, Assistant Fire Management Officer Lance Noxon said.

Elsewhere, the fires around Burney and Cassel began to settle down Thursday as a storm system moved through the area.

“The higher humidities and lower temperatures allowed firefighters to make very good progress on the fires,” California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokeswoman Hope Barton said Thursday night.

The windy and overcast conditions grounded air tankers that were battling the blaze, Cal Fire spokesman Dick Goings said early Thursday.

While air tankers weren’t flying the fire line because of the poor visibility, 18 helicopters continued to battle the blazes Thursday.

“Those winds get squirrelly when those thunderstorms come over the variable terrain – the winds go crazy,” Goings said.

The series of 40 fires burning in the Intermountain area grew to 14,454 acres and was 25 percent contained on Thursday, Barton said. Fourteen of the fires have been controlled.

The largest fire in the complex is the Goose, which nearly doubled from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning to 6,000 acres. The Cassel Fire grew to 5,000 acres and the Chalk Fire increased to 2,800 acres, Barton said. The 250-acre Backbone Fire near Ingot has been 100 percent contained, Cal Fire reported. The Goose Fire was 10 percent contained, the Cassel Fire was 50 percent contained and the Chalk Fire was 35 percent contained.

Meanwhile, the 404-acre Gomez Fire near Glenburn is 100 percent contained, and the 50-acre Cave Fire near Fall River Mills also is 100 percent contained.

There have been two minor injuries reported, but no structures have burned. There are no current evacuations in effect for that complex.

Highways 44 and 89 were reopened late Thursday night after being closed intermittently since the fires began, according to the California Highway Patrol.

A fire burning off Backbone Ridge near Jones Valley north of Lake Shasta had burned 250 acres but was 100 percent contained Thursday, Goings said.

Meanwhile, the Hat Creek Complex of fires, including the Sugarloaf and Brown fires, grew to 9,978 acres from Wednesday night to Thursday morning, and was 40 percent contained as of Thursday evening.

Clouds dumped “a good amount of rain” on the fires, U.S. Fish and Wildlife spokesman Richard Hadley said. “That’s helped quite a bit,” he said.

As of Thursday night, the Sugarloaf Fire was at 8,037 acres and 25 percent contained. The Brown Fire was at 1,893 acres and 90 percent contained.

Evacuations continue in Old Station and the Rancheria RV Park.

A combined 3,114 firefighters are battling the two complexes in eastern Shasta and Lassen counties.

Firefighters from across the state and as far south as Los Angeles and Riverside counties have come to the area to help.

Source: Record Searchlight

Shasta/Lassen County Wildfire Update 8-6-09

A quick update of the fires around my neck of the woods.

A series of 40 fires burning in eastern Shasta County around Burney and Cassel grew overnight to more than 12,000 acres, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported today.

The SHU (Shasta-Trinity Unit) Lightning Complex has burned 12,704 acres since Sunday and is 20 percent contained.

Winds that picked up as a system moved through the area Wednesday night helped fan the complex.

“The weather in conjunction with the topography (steep terrain) moved our numbers (acreage) up,” Cal Fire spokeswoman Linda Galvan said.

The largest fire in the complex is the Goose, which nearly doubled overnight to 6,000 acres. The Cassel (4,100 acres) and Chalk (2,700 acres) fires didn’t grow overnight, while the 250-acre Backbone Fire near Ingot has been 100 percent contained, Cal Fire reported. The Goose Fire is 10 percent contained and the Chalk Fire is 30 percent contained.

Meanwhile, the 404-acre Gomez Fire near Glenburn is 100 percent contained and the 50-acre Cave Fire near Fall River Mills also is 100 percent contained.

There have been two minor injuries reported but no structures have burned. There are no current evacuations in effect.

Highway 44 five miles west of Highway 89 to Highway 36 remains closed this morning.

Highway 89 remains closed to all traffic except for residents between highways 44 and 299.

Meanwhile, the Hat Creek Complex of fires also grew overnight to 9,978 acres and is 20 percent contained.

Evacuations continue in Old Station and the Rancheria RV Park.

A combined 3,114 firefighters are battling the two complexes in eastern Shasta County and Lassen County.

Firefighters from across the state and as far south as Los Angeles and Riverside counties have come to the area to help.

Last evening I took this picture of the Chalk fire from my front yard. That’s not a thunder storm, it’s a fire storm making it’s own thunderheads. It is the opposite side of the picture that starts this Update.

It's not a thunder storm

Shasta/Lassen Wildfire Upate 8-5-09

The series of fires burning in eastern Shasta County around Burney and Cassel are expected to be contained by Saturday, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said today.

Dubbed the SHU (Shasta-Trinity Unit) Lightning complex, the 40 fires have burned 7,678 acres since Sunday.

Containment means there’s a line around the fire to the point that it’s not expected to grow any larger.

“It’s basically safe, it won’t cause a problem,” Cal Fire spokesman Mike Witesman said. “We still have people on the fire, cooling it down and putting out the hot spots.”

The three largest fires in the complex are the Cassel (2,800 acres), Goose (2,000 acres), and Chalk (2,200 acres). There are no evacuations in effect at this time.

Meanwhile, the Hat Creek Complex of fires nearly doubled overnight, going from 4,606 to 8,558 acres today, Cal Fire said. The lightning-sparked fires are burning in the Hat Creek and Old Station areas in eastern Shasta County and Lassen County.

The largest of the series of fires is the Sugarloaf near Old Station, which has grown from 2,678 acres to more than 6,600 acres. About 300 residents near the Sugarloaf fire are without power, Cal Fire said.

At least one outbuilding has been destroyed by the Hat Creek Complex of fires and one firefighter has suffered a minor injury, Cal Fire reported this afternoon.

Evacuation advisories remain in effect this morning for Old Station and the Rancheria RV Park in Hat Creek on Black Angus Lane, according to Cal Fire. Approximately 130 residences are threatened.

Containment of the Hat Creek Complex is expected by Aug. 17, said Jeff Fontana, spokesman for the Susanville Interagency Fire Center.

Highway 44 west of Highway 89 in Shasta County to the Highway 36 junction in Lassen County reopened today. Highway 89 from highways 44 to 299 also is closed.

The road between Cassel and Chaffey Roads is closed, and north of Chaffey Road is only open to residents.

Courtesy of The Record Searchlight

Don’t bet on the Goose or Chalk fires being contained by Saturday. Thunder storms are already starting new fires west of Redding as I type this. The wind and dry lightening heading this way do not look encouraging.

Click to enlarge.

Shasta/Lassen County Wildfire Update 8-4-09

Evacuation of RV Park

UPDATED TUESDAY | 5:45 P.M. – Evacuation of the Rancheria RV Park in Hat Creek on the west side of Highway 89 has just been ordered.

Highways 89 & 44 Closure Update

UPDATED TUESDAY | 4:44 P.M. – State Route 44 currently closed from 5 miles west of junction SR 89 in Shasta County to junction State Route 36 in Lassen County due to fire. No estimated time to open, no detour. State Route 89 still closed from junction SR 44 to junction SR 299. No estimated time to open, no detour. The highway has been opened and closed at various times since it was first closed at 7 p.m. Sunday.

CURRENT ISSUE OF NEWS

The current issue of The News is now available at the Current Issue link above right. We urge you to “refresh” or “reload” pages for the most updated info.

CAL FIRE Map

Click on the map above for larger version of the fires under command of the state agency CAL FIRE. The map shows approximate locations of the 41 fires under the command of the agency.

U.S. Forest Service Map

Click on the map above for larger version of the fires under command of the U.S. Forest Service in Hat Creek and Old Station. CLICK HERE for Tuesday, 9 a.m. update information.

Courtesy of The Intermountain News

Lightning Starts 35 Fires in Eastern Shasta County. Evacuations in Some Areas

Fire crews were battling 35 blazes in the Intermountain area ranging in size from a quarter-acre to more than 600 acres. Residents evacuated from Big Eddy Estates near Fall River Mills and along VN Lane in Hat Creek. The Susanville Interagency Fire Center (SIFC) is dispatching ground forces and aircraft to nearly 100 reported fires in the wake of widespread thunderstorms over the past two days. Lightning detecting equipment showed nearly 1,800 lightning strikes in northeast California over the past 24 hours, with 96 fires reported by mid morning, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2009. Saturday evening lightning activity was concentrated in a swath extending northwest from Susanville, but strikes were recorded across the SIFC region. There were 43 reported fires on the Lassen National Forest, 40 reported blazes on lands protected by the CAL FIRE Lassen-Modoc-Plumas Unit, 14 fires on Bureau of Land Management public lands, and two reported fires in Lassen Volcanic National Park. The largest incident is the Dodge Complex, two fires burning about 60 miles northeast of Susanville, about five miles from the community of Madeline. The fires, dubbed Mendiboure and Dodge, have burned about 1,500 acres of grass, brush, juniper and mountain mahogany on public lands managed by the BLM. Some ranch structures were threatened; none were damaged. By early Monday morning, humidity levels reached between 40-70 percent, aiding firefighting efforts.

!Update!

Here’s a personal update. The picture below shows Chalk Mountain and a fire just on the other side. It’s about 5 miles away from the house.