Unusual thunderstorms start lightning-caused fires, power outages

Thunderstorms that hit the North State late Friday and early Sunday produced hundreds of lightning strikes that started at least several dozen small forest fires.

The rain set a record for the Redding area and also led to more than 2,000 power outages in Shasta County.

"For this time of year, it's definitely unusual," National Weather Service meteorologist Hannah Chandler-Cooley said about the unseasonal, wet weather.

The thunderstorm over Redding dropped 0.91 inches of rain from late Friday through 2 a.m. Saturday. Smaller showers afterward brought the total to 1.01 inches, Chandler-Cooley said.

For posterity, the 0.77 of an inch of rainfall that fell at Redding Municipal Airport set a record for the date of Aug. 9. The weather service takes those measurements from 1 a.m. to 1 a.m. for statistics' sake.

Despite the cooler weather Saturday afternoon — it was 73 degrees at 3 p.m. in Redding — firefighters responded to a vegetation fire in the area of Platina and Yolla Bolly roads southwest of Redding between Platina and Ono.

The Bolla Fire was contained just after 4 p.m. at 12 acres.

Meanwhile, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest said Saturday afternoon that 578 lightning strikes were recorded across the forest over the previous 24 hours. 

Those lightning bolts resulted in at least seven small fires:

• Pine Fire: West of Brushy Mountain, .25 acre, staffed with line around it.
• Brushy Fire: Near Brushy Mountain, .25 acre, staffed with smokejumpers.
• Tangle Fire: At Tangle Blue Creek and Highway 3, 0.1 acre, contained and controlled.
• Doney Fire: Northwest of Lakehead, single tree, staffed.
• Prospect Fire: West of Shoeinhorse Mountain, single tree, jumpers on scene.
• Happy Fire: Happy Hunting Grounds, single tree, staffed.
• Spring Fire: Across the canyon from Prospect Creek, 0.1 acre, jumpers on scene. 

The Forest Service flew a reconnaissance flight Saturday to identify any other potential fires.

While crews worked to extinguish the small fires, Pacific Gas and Electric crews worked to restore power to several thousand Shasta County residents following the thunderstorm.

Altogether nearly 2,400 customers were without electricity as of 9 a.m. Saturday.

The largest area that lost power was in Happy Valley, where 1,800 customers didn't have electricity until it was restored Saturday morning.

Others had to wait to get their power back on. In French Gulch, 283 lost electricity. Northeast of Bella Vista generally along the Highway 299 corridor, 239 customers lost power. East of Anderson, power went out for 47 customers.

The thunderstorm was accompanied by periods of heavy rain, which kept fires to a minimum.

"Even with some areas getting a good, wetting rain, the fuels dry out quickly and a small smoldering fire can quickly grow to a major fire," forest officials in Siskiyou County said. "Fire staff will continue to monitor the landscape for any additional fires that may show today or over the next few days."

There were at least 14 fires in the Klamath National Forest. All were less than 1 acre with several only a tenth of an acre, KNF officials said Saturday morning.

The fires were located on the Goosenest, Happy Camp/Oak Knoll and Salmon/Scott ranger districts.

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection crews also were on the lookout for more signs of smoke.

"We're on patrol status," public information officer Suzi Brady of Cal Fire's Siskiyou Unit said Saturday morning.

Brady said three small fires were confirmed in the Yreka area. One was a 20-by-10-foot spot fire, another was a 10-by-10-foot spot fire and the third was a single snag burning in a tree.

Other fires burning

Elsewhere, Lassen County's McDonald Fire was 50% contained as of Saturday morning with the acreage holding at 1,070 acres.

Flames were burning high-desert grasses, brush and juniper about 10 miles east of Madeline.

The lightning-caused fire is in a remote ranching area and no buildings have been damaged or destroyed, although a few ranch structures are nearby, according to the Bureau of Land Management.

Crews expect to have the fire fully contained on Monday.

Meanwhile, the 3-2 Willow Fire southeast of Fall River Mills in Lassen National Forest remained at 107 acres Saturday and was 90 percent contained, Cal Fire said.

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Mike Chapman is a journalist and photographer for the Record Searchlight in Redding, Calif. His newspaper career spans Yreka and Eureka in Northern California and Bellingham, Wash. Follow him on Twitter @mikechapman_RS. Subscribe today!