Air Tankers 79, 80 & 81 released from incident. Tankers 82 & 83 from Columbia still committed and reloading in Columbia.
About 1200 Aug. 25, a motor home caught fire in the Merced River Canyon near Calif. Hwy 140 in Mariposa County. Fire spread to both sides of the Merced River, on the Sierra National Forest to the south and the Stanislaus National Forest to the north. As of 1900 about 1000 acres hab burned with the fire mostly moving up the north slope towards Trumbull Peak where a historic fire lookout tower sits. Spotters are directing helicopter drops in the area of the tower in an attempt to preserve the structure. The Sierra National Forest is directing the response.
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| Motor Fire Perimeter Map |
Incident Type Wildfire
Cause Motor Home Fire
Date of Origin Thursday August 25th, 2011 approx. 12:30 PM
Location Merced River Canyon
GPS 38.106 latitude, -120.435 longitude
Incident Commander Mark Smith
Current Situation
Total Personnel 300
Size 1,000 acres
Fuels Involved
6, Pine and brush.
Fire Behavior
Crowning with a rapid rate of spread
Significant Events
Evacuations and Road Closures: Cedar lodge, Incline and local Merced River Canyon Campgrounds were voluntarily evacuated. Rancheria, Old El Portal, and Yosemite West have been advised to prepare for evacuations. Highway 140, from the Foresta Bridge west is closed. There is no estimation as to when Hwy. 140 will re-open.
Outlook/Planned Actions Air tankers, Helicopter types 1&2,Dozers, Hotshot Crews, Type 1,3&6 engines. The Central Sierra Type two Incident Management Team will be on scene Aug. 26 to take command of the fire response efforts. Additional fire resources have been ordered.
Growth Potential Significant
Terrain Difficulty The fire is terrain driven in very steep canyon slopes, and has burned to the top of the ridges above the Merced River on both sides of the canyon.
Remarks
Local Law enforcement recommend procationary measures. Stay away from Hwy 140 heading to Yosemite National Park. Residence south of the Yosemite maintenance station are being evacuated.
Current Weather
Wind Conditions 10 mph NW
Temperature 83 degrees
Humidity 33%
More Info: Yosemite National Park has provided two "hotline" numbers for the public to call for fire informaiton 24 hours per day: (209) 372-0372 or 372-0379.
Webcams http://sierrafire.cr.usgs.gov/swfrs/pages/WebCam.htm
http://ssgic.cr.usgs.gov/cgi-bin/camHist11.pl?camera=1_mobile_ynp_1&lastFrame=true
RR Link:
Agency Link: Inciweb Link
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