'Critical Fire Weather' Ahead As 25 Major Fires Burn: 2020 Map

CALIFORNIA — After weeks of continuous burning across the Golden State, more than 17,000 firefighters remained Friday on the front lines of various massive fires. A significant step was reached on Thursday as San Diego-area crews contained the 17,000-acre Valley Fire.

Still, more two dozen new blazes were sparked just Thursday; fortunately, though, those were quickly contained, according to Cal Fire.

To date in 2020, more than 8,000 wildfires have burned 3.6 million acres in California. And since Aug. 15 alone — 6,900 structures have been destroyed and 26 lives have been lost in the state.

As of Friday, Cal Fire classified 25 current fires as "major."

Meanwhile, as fire season rages on, the complex fires grow in size, and new records continue to be set. Cal Fire says these new records have been recorded this season:

• 5 of the Top 20 largest wildfires in California History have occurred in 2020.
• Largest Wildfires - #1 August Complex, #3 SCU Lightning Complex, #4 LNU Lightning Complex, #5 North Complex, and #6 Creek Fire.
• Most Destructive - #5 North Complex, #10 LNU Lightning Complex, #11 CZU Lightning Complex, and #17 Creek Fire.
• Deadliest Wildfires - #5 North Complex and #20 LNU Lightning Complex.

Looking to the coming days, firefighters are concerned with "critical fire weather" ahead.

SEE ALSO: Discovery Channel Partners With Cal Fire In New Series

"A fire weather watch is in effect beginning Saturday morning through a large portion of Northern California for gusty winds and low humidity, bringing critical fire weather conditions," Cal Fire said Thursday. "This pattern will remain through Monday, affecting areas including but not limited to the East Bay Hills, North Bay, Sacramento Valley and Sierra Foothills."

Here's more on some of the major fires burning as of Friday, via Cal Fire:

**CALFIRE Incidents**

LNU Lightning Complex, multiple North Bay counties (more info…)
Napa, Lake, Sonoma, Colusa, Solano, and Yolo Counties
*363,220 acres, 98% contained
*While no growth is expected, fire suppression repair work is ongoing.

SCU Lightning Complex, multiple Easy Bay counties (more info…)
Contra Costa, Alameda, Santa Clara San Joaquin, Merced, and Stanislaus Counties
*396,624 acres, 98% contained
*While no growth is expected, fire suppression repair work is ongoing.

**Unified Command Incidents**

North Complex, Plumas County (more info…)
Southwest of Susanville (Plumas National Forest)
*304,492 acres, 78% contained
*15 fatalities
*2,248 structures destroyed
*Evacuations in place
*Includes the Bear and Claremont Fire
*CAL FIRE Team 4 is in unified command with US Forest Service IMT Team 4, Butte County Sheriff’s Office and California State Parks

Creek Fire, Fresno County (more info…)
Northeast of Shaver Lake (Sierra National Forest)
*291,426 acres, 36% contained
*Evacuations in effect
*Heavy tree mortality in the area
*855 structures destroyed
*CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 1 in unified command with USFS Great Basin Team 1

Butte/Tehama/Glenn (BTU/TGU) Lightning Complex, multiple Counties (more info…)
Butte, Tehama, and Glenn Counties
*19,609 acres, 97% contained
*14 structures destroyed
*While no growth is expected, fire suppression repair work is ongoing.

SQF Complex, Tulare County (more info…)
25 miles north of Kernville (Sequoia National Forest)
*144,777 acres, 36% contained
*Castle and Shotgun Fires merged into this complex
*CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 6 in unified command with USFS Team 2

**Coordinated Command Incidents**

August Complex, Tehama County (more info…)
Elk Creek and Stonyford area (Mendocino National Forest)
*862,733 acres, 40% contained
*South Zone 487,584 acres, 70% contained
*North Zone 275,521 acres, 35% contained
*West Zone 104,230 acres, 50% contained
*1 fatality
*Includes multiple fires including the Elkhorn, Hopkins, Willow, Vinegar, and Doe fires
*A California Interagency Incident Management Team and Great Basin Team in command
*CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 3 & 5 are deployed on the West Zone of the complex

**Federal Incidents**

Snow Fire, Riverside County (more info…)
Snow Creek Rd, west of Palm Springs
*6,254 acres, 80% contained
*Repopulation has started

El Dorado Fire, San Bernardino County (more info…)
West of Oak Glen (San Bernardino National Forest)
*22,604 acres, 81% contained
*1 fatality
*Evacuations in place
*10 structures destroyed
*California Interagency Incident Management Team 13 in command

Fox Fire, Siskiyou County (more info…)
*2,188 acres, 73% contained
*Evacuations in place

Slater Fire, Siskiyou County (more info…)
5 miles North of Happy Camp (Klamath National Forest)
*153,850 acres, 25% contained
*2 fatalities
*Evacuation orders in place

Devil Fire, Siskiyou County (more info…)
5 miles north of Upper Devil’s Peak (Klamath National Forest)
*8,173 acres, 18% contained

Bobcat Fire, Los Angeles County (more info…)
North of Duarte (Angeles National Forest)
*113,986 acres, 55% containment
*Evacuations in place
*Unified command with the US Forest Service, Los Angeles County Fire Department and Monrovia Fire Department

Dolan Fire, Monterey County (more info…)
Hwy 1, 10 miles south of Big Sur (Los Padres National Forest)
*128,417 acres, 46% contained
*Structures threatened
*California Interagency Incident Command Team 15 assuming command today

Bullfrog Fire, Fresno County (more info…)
SE of Bullfrog Lake (Sierra National Forest)
*900 acres, 20% contained

Fork Fire, El Dorado County, (more info…)
15 miles northeast of Pollock Pines (El Dorado National Forest)
*1,667 acres, 70% contained

Valley Fire, San Diego County (more info…)
Near Alpine (Cleveland National Forest)
*17,093 acres, 100% contained

Lake Fire, Los Angeles County (more info…)
Southwest of Lake Hughes
Angeles National Forest / Los Angeles County Fire Department
* 31,089 acres, 97% contained

Apple Fire, Riverside County (more info…)
Oak Glen/Cherry Valley (San Bernardino National Forest)
*33,424 acres, 95% contained

Red Salmon Complex – Humboldt County (more info…)
14 miles northeast of Willow Creek (Shasta-Trinity National Forest)
*108,244 acres, 31% contained

Blue Jay Fire, Mariposa County (more info…)
Yosemite National Park Wilderness
*4,488 acres, 50% contained

Wolf Fire, Tuolumne County (more info…)
Yosemite National Park Wilderness
*1,087 acres, 35% contained

Woodward Fire, Marin County (more info…)
3 miles southwest of Olema (Point Reyes National Seashore)
*4,929 acres, 97% contained

Slink Fire, Mono County (more info…)
2 miles west of Coleville (Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest)
*26,759 acres, 86% contained

Moraine, Tulare County (more info…)
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Wilderness
*668 acres, 70% contained

Rattlesnake, Tulare County (more info…)
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Wilderness
*4,070 acres, 0% contained