Park Fire update — Monday, Sept. 9

According to a statement from the Southwest Complex Incident Management Team 2, the Park Fire has burned 429,603 acres and is 99 percent contained. Total resources include 563 personnel, one helicopter, seven crews, eight engines, four dozers, 17 water tenders, three chippers, 10 excavators, three feller bunchers, four skidders, two log loaders, one backhoe and five road graders.

Current situation
The hazard tree group is continuing to clean up dead hazard trees that were felled along Ponderosa Way. The roads group will finish Pearl Lake Loop today and Bear Wallow Road in a couple days. While repair activity progresses on the Park Fire, the need for fire-suppression personnel and equipment across the western United States remains high.

Some Park Fire resources are being reassigned to other incidents and others are being sent home for crew rest. Community members might notice a decrease in personnel, equipment, and activity; however, fire-suppression repair work and fire patrols will continue, just at a smaller scale.

One type of machine being used by the hazard-tree group is a feller buncher. They are extraordinary machines capable of grabbing one or more full-sized trees, cutting them off near the base and stacking or even throwing them whole onto a pile. They operate on tracks or wheels. Tracked units tend to disrupt the soil less than wheeled units, so they are being used on the Park Fire.

There are three types of head used on feller bunchers: felling heads, which fell single trees; bunching heads, which fell multiple trees at a time; and processing heads, which fell a tree and process it by removing all the branches and cutting the trunk into sections.

Weather and fire safety
Hazy, smoky skies are the result of fires in other states. Get air-quality information for your area and view a smoke map here: tinyurl.com/ypkfbkyn. While temperatures will gradually moderate throughout the week, relative humidity levels remain very low and winds remain gusty, increasing the potential for new fires to spread quickly. Be particularly cautious while recreating and using equipment outdoors, and be aware of applicable fire restrictions.

Forest closure
Some Lassen National Forest lands, roads, and trails near the fire area are temporarily closed for the safety of the public and firefighters during the repair phase of the fire. Prior to recreating on your public lands, view Forest Order No. 06-24-07 and the map here: fs.usda.gov/alerts/lassen/alerts-notices. It is your responsibility to know where you are in relation to the closure order.

Fire restrictions
Fire restrictions remain in effect throughout the area. For details, view Forest Order No. 06-24-04 here: fs.usda.gov/alerts/lassen/alerts-notices. Find links to other land management agencies’ restrictions in the Park Fire Information Linktree.

More information
Park Fire information (Southwest CIMT 2): (530) 414-9298, 2024.park@firenet.gov.

Park Fire Linktree (fire information website links): linktr.ee/park_fire.