RIM FIRE REMINDERS: 9-11-13

A forest closure order is in effect for locations within and proximate to the fire area.  (That means the Stanislaus Forest south of Hwy 108.)

Unburned islands of fuel within and adjacent the fire perimeter continue to consume and create spotting near or across planned containment lines; therefore the percent contained remains the same.

The reported containment percentage will increase when fire activity subsides.

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Community Meeting at Tenaya Elementary School 19177 Highway 120 Groveland CA at 6 pm, September 11, to provide the public with current information on Rim Fire suppression efforts.

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Current Weather

Wind Conditions	7 mph E
Temperature	60 degrees
Humidity	30%

RIM FIRE UPDATE, Sept 10th, 8:24 p.m.

September 10, 2013    08:24 pm     Tracey Petesen, MML News Reporter 

 

Tuolumne County, CA - The Incident Command says the Rim Fire is in "hold patrol and mop up mode".

The fire has grown almost 500 acres to 255,146 or 399 square miles and is still 80% contained. The number of firefighters has dropped to 2,735 on scene. The cost is now $102 million.  

Incident Command Spokesperson Mark Healy says, "The interior pockets of fuels are continuing to burn themselves out and they're getting smaller and smaller. The pockets near the line are dwindling. We are having fewer threats to our containment out there. Firefighters are continuing to mop up further back in off of the control lines. We are expecting the humidity to climb slightly which will help us by reducing the flame's intensit. The fires won't burn so hot so lots of good news."

There was one road opening today as Evergreen Road opened at Noon to Evergreen Lodge. However, the road continues to be closed from the Lodge and beyond.

The Rim Fire Incident Command is holding another community meeting this time in Groveland. It will be held at the Tenaya Elementary School at 6pm.

MI WUK / SUGAR PINE FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT HAS A NEW CHIEF

WELCOME to Chief Larry Crabtree who was voted in tonight by the Mi Wuk Sugar Pine Fire Board.  Larry has been serving as Interim Chief since May.  He has earned the support of his captains and the Fire Chief Selection Committee which was made up of several Fire Board members as well as 5-6 community members.  That committee will now morph into a Fire Board Advisory Committee, with perhaps a few new and a few retiring members.

Chief Crabtree has many credentials and much knowledge to share with our community and we are really fortunate to have his leadership.  I'm so glad Russ and I were at the Fire Board meeting tonight to observe the outcome of the process that took place in a 'closed meeting' and then officially welcome Chief Crabtree.

RIM FIRE UPDATE, Sept 10, 2013, around 8:00 a.m.; Info on Evergreen Rd.

Rim Fire Update -- September 10, 2013

Incident: Rim Fire Wildfire
Released: 3 hrs. ago

RIM FIRE UPDATE September 10 2013 6:00 AM

InciWeb: http://www.inciweb.org/incident/3660/Twitter: https://twitter.com/info_ciimt1 https://twitter.com/Sierra_NF https://twitter.com/YosemiteNPS

Flickr: http://tinyurl.com/k5th863
Email: RimFireInfo@gmail.com

Blogger: RimFireInfo@blogspot.com

Incident Statistics
Acres Burned: 254 685 (398 square miles)
Containment: 80%
Fire Start Date: August 17 2013
Fire Cause: Under Investigation
Cost to date: $100.4 million
Structures Threatened: 1 285
Residences Destroyed: 11
Commercial Property Destroyed: 3
Outbuildings Destroyed: 97
Injuries: 9
Total Personnel 3 027

Fire Update
Firefighters continue to face hot and dry conditions coupled with low humidity. Active fire behavior is expected today in pockets of unburned vegetation in the Clavey River drainage the Reynolds Creek and Jawbone Creek drainages within the northeast area of the fire perimeter. Fire spread within control lines west of Harden Lake and Harden Road and west of Tioga Road in the southeast area of the fire is also expected. Firefighters will continue to work to quickly contain new spot fires patrol mop up and monitor lines while maintaining structure defense. South by southwest winds may cause smoky conditions near the southeast corner of the fire while a smoke column may again develop due to interior burning.

Park and Forest Closures
Yosemite National Park has closed Tamarack Flat and Yosemite Creek Campgrounds both located along Tioga Road. White Wolf Campground and White Wolf Lodge remain closed. The Stanislaus National Forest has issued an area closure for the entire Groveland Ranger District and for the Mi-Wok Ranger District east of State Route 108.  (From BK:  believe it or not, we had a chain saw cutting a downed tree behind our house yesterday.  Forest Service informed them of the closure.)  Additional details are available from the Stanislaus Forest Supervisor's Office 209-532-3671; Mi-Wok Ranger Station (209) 586-3234; Summit Ranger Station 209-965-3434; and Groveland Ranger Station 209-962-7825.

Road Openings
Visitors travelling to Yosemite Valley through Groveland will find State Hwy 120 and the Big Oak Flat Road open. Businesses are open and providing services (gasoline food and lodging) for travelers.

Road Closures
State Route 120 (Tioga Road) remains closed from Crane Flat to 1 1⁄2 miles east of White Wolf. Park visitors can access Tuolumne Meadows from SR-395 via the park entrance at Tioga Pass. Cherry Lake Road is closed at State Route 120. Evergreen Road Old Yosemite Road and Hardin Flat Road are also closed.

Evacuations and Advisories
No mandatory or advisory evacuation orders are in effect in Mariposa or Tuolumne Counties but some secondary roads remain closed to non-residents within the fire area.

For more information or if you have questions please contact the Rim Fire at 209-928-1059 or 209-928- 1053. If you have questions about Yosemite National Park call 209-372-0327 or 209-372-0329. Updated information is also available at http://www.inciweb.org/incident/3660/. All media are requested to report to the Incident Command Post to check in with Public Information Officers. 

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Evergreen Road to Partially Open Today

Incident: Rim Fire Wildfire
Released: 37 min. ago
Evergreen road to open today at noon to evergreen Lodge. Road remains closed beyond Evergreen Lodge.

RIM FIRE UPDATE, Sept. 10th, 8:35 a.m.

September 10, 2013    08:35 am   B.J. Hansen, MML News Director 

Tuolumne County, CA -- Officials are estimating that the Rim Fire has grown to 254,685 acres.

The Incident Command completed its morning briefing, and the fire is still listed as 80% contained. 3,027 firefighters are on scene, and the cost to fight the flames is up to $100.4 million.

Firefighters are expected to face hot and dry conditions again today. The Incident Command is predicting active fire behavior in the Clavey River drainage, Reynolds Creek drainage and Jawbone Creek drainage.

The fire is also expected to spread within the control lines west of Harden Lake and west of Tioga Road. A large smoke column is expected to develop again today due to the interior burning. Firefighters will also continue to patrol for new spot fires.

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The humidity has dropped.  Let's hope this weather front due in tomorrow will raise our humidity!

From InciWeb.org about half an hour ago:

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	10 mph NE
Temperature	59 degrees
Humidity	28%

'COPTER LOADING RETARDANT IN THE LONG BARN AREA

I grabbed these photos off of the TV last night, Channel 10 in Sacramento:

The helicopters are loading with retardant at this 'portable' site in order to save flying time by going to a retardant fill site farther away. 

We use closed captions on our TV so my husband can hear better.  Sadly, look at the spelling of Tuolumne in the captions of the photos above!!!!!  I did not notice that when I snapped the picture.

So............from Mi Wuk Village in Tualomie County.............    Have a great day.  I still think the loading of the 'copter is interesting.  :)

RIM FIRE UPDATE, Sept 10, 7 a.m.-ish

There is no update information on MyMotherlode.com this morning as of 7 a.m.  And on InciWeb.org there seems to be little change.  I do notice changes in fire behavior overnight in the report below.   Sorry I can't tell you exactly where Divisions  P & Q are located.  I'm looking for a map with those markers.  A positive note:  humidity is up to 42% this morning and that's a good thing.

In a separate post, just before this one I hope, is a video of the Sunday evening Town Meeting in Twain Harte.

I haven't been able to locate a legend for the map above and can't tell you exactly what the yellow highlighted areas signify.  For what it's worth, I think they are the current active spots of interest for the fire crews.

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildfire
Cause	Under Investigation
Date of Origin	Saturday August 17th, 2013 approx. 03:15 PM
Location	Groveland Range District, Stanislaus NF
Incident Commander	Mcgowan

Current Situation

Total Personnel	3,104
Size	253,332 acres
Percent Contained	80%
Estimated Containment Date	Friday September 20th, 2013 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved	Brush, Oaks, and Pine, conifer stands
Fire Behavior	Fire behavior observed within the interior unburned islands of Division P consisted of running surface fire and short crown fire runs resulting in a rotating column with fire whirls in the early evening hours. Numerous spot fires were detected outside the existing containment lines, largest reported at one quarter acre. Surface fire with isolated torching was observed during the remainder of the night in other active portions of the fire, along with creeping and smoldering in other contained Divisions of the fire.
Significant Events	New initial attack fires discovered during yesterday's day shift have been contained. Night shift resources have contained all known spots outside the containment lines near the Division P and Q break. Resources also completed a small firing operation around developments at Hetch Hetchy to further secure the fire perimeter around those structures.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Implementation of the Suppression Damage Repair Plan will continue. Resources will continue to patrol, mop-up, and monitor all areas of the fire, in addition to the developed areas interior of the fire perimeter and those adjacent to the fire area. Resources will continue to monitor for possible spot fires and mop-up yesterday's new initial attack fires that were reported during day shift.
Growth Potential	High
Terrain Difficulty	Extreme
Remarks	O-Shaughnessey, and Aspen Valley continue to be evacuated due to lack of power and ongoing mitigations of hazards caused by fire. Significant progress is being made to mitigate these hazards and restore power. Small contingents of employees from Hetch Hetchy Power and Water have been allowed back into Mather. The pockets of unburned fuel within the perimeter of the fire area continue to consume and create potential for spot fires outside the containment lines. Approximately 2,490 structures remain threatened in areas near the fire perimeter to the north, south, and southeast portions of the fire. State Route 120 is opened to Crane Flat and the Big Oak Road is open from Crane Flat to Yosemite Valley. The portion of State Route 120 (Tioga Pass Road) from Crane Flat to White Wolf remains closed. Evergreen Road, Old Yosemite Road, Harden, and the Cherry Creek Road remain closed. A Forest closure order is in effect for locations within the proximate to the fire area.

Current Weather

Wind Conditions	10 mph E
Temperature	56 degrees
Humidity	42%    (Signature won't cooperate this morning!)