I will be updating photos throughout the day as they come in so be sure to check back or refresh your browser.
Sikorsky at the Hermitage, 8/23 by Brendon ShaveThe Hermitage, 8/23 by Brendon ShaveHermitage, 8/23 by Brendon ShaveSikorsky at the Hermitage, 8/23 by Brendon ShaveHermitage-Lucia area. 1820 hours, 8/23Lucia/Hermitage area, 1820 hours, 8/23Lucia/Hermitage area 1820 hours, 8/23
I increased the HDR and tonal contrast so that the smoke columns would be more visible on these renderings.
Darn, I have been forgetting to note the times. Will check my metadata. These are from 2:45 pm —
And what I can see that Rich can’t — where it is in the wilderness. USFS has been trying to “steer” Dolan away from Hermitage, Lucia, and Gamboa, and at least on the Hermitage side it is working.
Morning Glory Ranch by Michael Handy
By the way, Michael says all buildings are fine, the fire looks closer than it is in this photo.
Hermitage 8/23 am by Brendon Shave
Brendon says: “At the rate this side is burning it won’t be here until December.”
A note from Matt Harris, chief of Big Sur Fire: Closures on Highway 1 are hard closures. Note that if you leave beyond closure at #DolanFire, you will not be able to come back.
Please check back throughout the day for update, or refresh your browser window if you are keeping it open.
10 pm, and the Dolan Fire daily briefing finally came through. This is my last point of the day/night. May the rest of the night and tomorrow be uneventful, weather-wise.
AUGUST 23, 2020 8:00 PM Public Information Phone: (831) 272-0222
Big Sur FD: https://bigsurfire.org/ Incident Information:Start / Report Date: Aug. 18, 2020 Cause: UnknownFuels Involved: Chaparral, Brush, Timber understoryResources:Hand Crews: 9Engines: 42Dozers: 6 Size: 19,287Location: Hwy 1(MM32.20) N of Limekiln State Park, 10 miles S of Big SurHelicopters: 4 Fixed wing: 1Water Tenders: 6 Current Situation: A Red Flag Warning remains in effect and will be in place until Monday evening, August 24, at 5:00 p.m. Thunderstorms with little to no precipitation are possible, particularly this evening and into the early morning, and will be accompanied by erratic and gusty outflow winds. The fire is primarily backing, and the fire footprint has not significantly changed. Crews have made considerable progress creating dozer line to the North towards Partington Ridge. Crews began direct attack along the fire’s Southeast edge and continued point protection operations around Hermitage and Lucia. Today, firefighters secured more of the western perimeter of the fire along Hwy 1. Falling rocks and the potential of spot fires across the road remain as concerns on Hwy 1. Aerial resources took advantage of clear skies to assist ground resources with retardant and bucket drops. However, smoke impacted air operations. As air quality and visibility improve, aviation assets will support crews on the ground. Today, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Department entered into unified command with California Incident Management Team 2 and Big Sur Fire. The incident management team completed the move into a new incident command post at Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. The fire is threatening the communities of Hermitage, Partington Ridge, and Lucia. Multiple businesses, communications sites, parks and recreational sites are also threatened. Among natural resources threatened are the Ventana Wilderness and coastal watershed and habitat for threatened and endangered species, including the California condor.
Highway 1(MM 32.20) North of Limekiln State Park, 10 miles South of Big Sur
Incident Commander
USFS Mike Minton, ICT1 Big Sur FD Matt Harris, UIC
Incident Description
Wildfire
Coordinates
36.123 latitude, -121.602 longitude
Current Situation
Total Personnel
579
Size
19,287 Acres
Percent of Perimeter Contained
10%
Estimated Containment Date
Wednesday September 02nd, 2020 approx. 12:00 AM
Fuels Involved
Chaparral (6 feet)Brush (2 feet)Timber (Grass and Understory)
Significant Events
Active Flanking Short Crown Runs Backing
Outlook
Planned Actions
Crews in all divisions will continue to verify location, scout for opportunities to construct direct/indirect control lines, and evaluate need for point protection and structure defense.
Projected Incident Activity
Fire is burning on private land, the Los Padres National Forest Ventana wilderness. Fire is taking advantage of slope driven runs and dry fuel, moving up and down canyons, spotting and making erratic runs, fire movement in all directions, ie. west, south, north, and east. Area tends to burn actively in the evening hours driven by mid slope thermal weather activity. Concern that the smoke inversion will lift and the fire activity will increase. Predicted thunderstorms with high potential for extreme fire behavior due to outflow winds.
Current Weather
Weather Concerns
Mostly cloudy conditions prevailed across the incident as moisture from former Hurricane Genevieve streamed over the area. There were no thunderstorms or rain reported this afternoon. With the cloud cover, temperatures were a bit cooler and relative humidity was higher. A RED FLAG WARNING remained in effect due to the potential for dry thunderstorms. For tonight and Monday, the threat of dry thunderstorms will continue. So, the RED FLAG WARNING remains in effect until 500 PM Monday. At this time, the best chances for any thunderstorm development will be tonight and Monday morning.
Dolan Fire Update AUGUST 23, 2020 8:00 AM Public Information Phone: (831) 272-0222 Media Information Phone: (831) 272-0221 Incident E-mail: 2020.Dolan@firenet.gov Incident Website: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7018 Incident Information: Start / Report Date: Aug. 18, 2020 Cause: Unknown Fuels Involved: Chaparral, Brush, Timber understory Resources: Hand Crews: 8 Engines: 31 Dozers: 6 Current Situation: Los Padres National Forest: http://www.fs.usda.gov/lpnf Facebook: facebook.com/lospadresnationalforest Twitter: twitter.com/LosPadresNF Big Sur FD: bigsurfire.org/ Size: 19,287 Location: Hwy 1(MM32.20) N of Limekiln State Park, 10 miles S of Big Sur Helicopters: 4 Fixed wing: 1 Water Tenders: 6 Containment: 10% Injuries: 0 Total Personnel: 488 A Red Flag Warning is in effect today till 5:00 p.m. due to the combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures that will contribute to extreme fire behavior. Thunderstorms with little to no precipitation are possible and will be accompanied by erratic and gusty outflow winds between 30 and 65 mph across the fire area. The fire remained active overnight, primarily with backing fire. Fire activity moderated in the early morning hours as humidity increased. Crews continued to focus on point protection operations around Hermitage and Lucia to the South and Partington Ridge and Anderson Peak communications infrastructure to the North. The community of South Coast was secured. An infrared equipped aircraft flew a mapping flight over the fire yesterday afternoon. This data was used to revise the perimeter and was the primary reason for the increase in acreage. Today, operations will continue to focus on point protection as well as scouting for locations to build direct and indirect fire line using both heavy equipment and hand crews. Crews will also be checking the North Coast Ridge Road and working out any hotspots near the road. As the fire continues to burn along the eastern side of Highway 1, engines and crews continue will patrol and extinguish spot fires that are occurring across the highway. Winds are predicted to shift from predominantly north northwest to south southeast. This change in wind direction will shift the area of highest fire activity from the south end to the north end of the Dolan Fire. Smoke will continue to impact air operations around the fire, limiting aircraft availability and effectiveness. When air quality and visibility improve, aviation assets including helicopters, will support crews on the ground.
The incident management team will be moving into a new incident command post today at Big Sur Pfeiffer State Park. The move is expected to take most of the day so there will not be a Facebook Live meeting. Information for the next Facebook Live meeting will be posted on Inciweb and shared through our daily update. The fire is threatening the communities of Hermitage, Partington Ridge, and Lucia. Multiple businesses, communications sites, parks and recreational sites are also threatened. Among natural resources threatened are the Ventana Wilderness and coastal watershed and habitat for threatened and endangered species, including the California condor. Fire activity in the western United States has caused a high demand for fire personnel and equipment. The nation is in Preparedness Level 5 (PL5), the highest level. In PL5 over 80% of the nation’s incident management teams and wildland firefighting personnel are committed to incidents. Resource orders are being prioritized to fires across California and the west. Acreage reported here is an estimate and will be updated when IR images are available. Carmel Fire Info: https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2020/8/18/carmel-fire/ River Fire Info: https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2020/8/16/river-fire/ Updates and Meetings: Fire Information is producing two daily written updates. To request an update, email 2020.dolan@firenet.gov and provide your email address. A daily video update will be posted to the Los Padres National Forest Facebook page and Inciweb (See links in header). Weather: A Red Flag Warning is in effect over the fire area for thunderstorms, dry lightning and gusty outflow winds. Evacuations / Closures: Click here for an interactive map of Monterey County evacuations. The closure of Highway 1 has changed. The highway is now closed near mile marker 38/Troy Canyon on the north and Hermitage on the south. Smoke: The Monterey Bay Air Resources District has issued a Wildfire Air Quality Advisory. http://air.mbard.org/. Alert Monterey County: To receive emergency notifications regarding evacuations and critical events in Monterey County please sign up for A!ert Monterey County at the following website. https://member.everbridge.net/453003085611217/login Cooperating and Assisting Organizations: National Weather Service, California Highway Patrol, Monterey County Sheriff’s Department, Big Sur Volunteers, Cal Trans, California State Parks, OES, Ventana Wilderness Alliance Safety Message: This will be a long duration event. Residents in the affected area are encouraged to continue to prepare for the possibility of fire in their area in advance. Go to https://www.ready.gov/wildfires to learn how to prepare. concentration of smoke has reached UNHEALTHY levels of the AQI, residents should limit their activity by When the stayingindoorswiththedoorsandwindowsclosedtoavoidbreathingsmoke. Updatesonthecurrentair quality forecast and Air Monitoring data can be found at
The greatest threat for elevated thunderstorms will be from Sunday night into Monday morning. Lightning and gusty winds have the potential to produce new fire starts. Now is the time to prepare if a fire starts near you. Visit http://readyforwildfire.org for more info. #CaWx
Central Coast Smoke Outlook
Chance of incoming thunderstorms may increase fire behavior and produce more smoke but expect greater movement and dispersion of smoke with increase wind speeds. Areas south of the fires may see some improved air quality due predicted south winds.
Carmel (Day 6) and River (Day 8) are combined into one post. Click the title to open a separate window, refresh this page throughout the day. Stay safe and smart. Please maintain situational awareness at all times. Scroll down for “unofficial” satellite imagery updated 7:05 AM. A Red Flag Warning was issued for Sunday 5AM to Monday 5PM. CalFire Incident page Carmel & River CalFire Facebook Updates here. Sheriff Facebook Updates here. Monterey County Office of Emergency Services Facebook here
4:25 PM: Carmel and River Fires Google Earth Image with VIIRS and MODIS Satellite and CDF Infrared Outline (white line from 08/20/20). The Latest satellite heat detection spots are from 3:42 AM PM. (please see Important Caveat note at the bottom of this post)
Carmel Fire at 6,695 acres, 10% contained, 47 structures destroyed. The fire continued to burn up to existing containment lines and consumed interior islands of vegetation throughout the night. The fire behavior was moderate with fair humidity recovery. The fire is currently burning in close proximity to structures. The statewide drawdown of resources has impeded the critical need to support fire suppression of the fire. Most agencies are at drawdown and unable to fill resource requests. The lack of resource availability is affecting strategy and tactics.
Damage inspection is approximately 40% complete
River Fire Morning Update
River Fire at 48,424 acres, 15% contained, 19 structures destroyed. Last night the southern portion of the fire continued to actively burn to the south with winds from the northwest. The east side continued to back down to the dozer lines and agricultural fields and interior islands continued to burn remaining fuel.
The fire is expected to continue to burn on the southern end of the fire. The wind shift will be the concern on the southern edge, allowing the fire to out grow the current lines on the southeast portion of the fire. If the fire moves too far south when the winds move to the southeast flow, it could merge into the Carmel Fire.
Damage inspection is approximately 45% complete.
EVACUATION ORDER FOR HIGHWAY 68 AREAS, CARMEL VALLEY VILLAGE, ARROYO SECO AREAS, ETC.:
Evacuation Notificationshere (note: select the DASHBOARD tab from a desktop computer for a detailed map with hot spots plus evacuation zones)
Evacuation Map can be found here (Red is Order, Yellow is Warning)
Resources for Evacuees
Monterey County is expanding its evacuation shelters to south Monterey County. Due to additional evacuations from the River Fire, an evacuation shelter is being opened at the Salinas Valley Fairgrounds, 625 Division Street in King City.
The shelter will open Sunday morning, August 23rd at 8 am and will provide sleeping and meal accommodations. Evacuees who wish to shelter using their RVs can bring them to the fairground and check in at the shelter. This shelter will be able to accommodate evacuees with pets.
The shelter will be able to accommodate approximately 40 residents and will follow COVID-19 protocols. Evacuees should have face coverings when entering the shelter and be prepared to social distance. Shelter sleeping arrangements are being set up with COVID-19 health protocols. Temperature checks will be taken for everyone’s safety.
Here is a list of all county evacuation shelters:
Here is a list of all county evacuation shelters:
Salinas Valley Fairgrounds, 625 Division Street, King City
Carmel Middle School, 4380 Carmel Valley Rd, Carmel
Sherwood Hall, 940 North Main Street, Salinas
Monterey Conference Center, 1 Portola Plaza, Monterey
The County also has an evacuation center at the King City Library, 402 Broadway, which provides information and support, snacks, water and charging for devices for evacuee. It is open 8 am to 8 pm.
For donations visit https://montereyco.recovers.org/ or go to the Seaside High School (2200 Noche Buena St, Seaside, CA 93955) between noon and 5pm Today August 23rd. You can also pick up supplies such as food, water, clothing, pet food, and diapers at the Seaside High School Location
From SPCA: The SPCA is currently under an evacuation warning. We are safe, and we are here for you and your pets. We have been prepared for this for years. We are currently moving supplies and animals to the Monterey County Fairgrounds and Hitchcock Road Animal Services. We are doing this now so that we can continue our promise to always be here for you.
7:05 AM: Carmel and River Fires Google Earth Image with VIIRS and MODIS Satellite and CDF Infrared Outline (white line from 08/20/20). The Latest satellite heat detection spots are from 2:54 AM PT (please see Important Caveat note at the bottom of this post)
The greatest threat for elevated thunderstorms will be from Sunday night into Monday morning. Lightning and gusty winds have the potential to produce new fire starts. Now is the time to prepare if a fire starts near you. Visit http://readyforwildfire.org for more info. #CaWx
Important caveats: Please note that the squares on the heat detection maps represent the expected margin of error, not the size of the area burned. In other words, the detection could have come from anywhere within the square. Also be aware that false detections do sometimes occur. An outlying or “over the line” heat detection is not, by itself, a confirmation that there is fire in the area indicated. In addition, the satellites do not detect heat everywhere that fire exists. Creeping, backing or smoldering fire is often not detected. Finally, the detections are only snapshots of moments in time. Flare ups that occur before or after a satellite pass may be entirely missed.
Also be aware that yellow squares disappear from the map after 6 days. These are not maps of the area burned since the fire began, just maps of where heat has been detected during the past week.
