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Three fatalities reported in California as result of wildfire burning in California

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PHOTO CREDITS: CHRIS TUITE/IMAGESPACE

This Monday, three fatalities were reported in Shasta County as a result of the Zogg Fire, which is currently burning roughly 200 miles north of San Francisco. 

The fire started as a vegetation fire on Sunday and threatens to spread farther. All three deaths were civilians. No further details about the victims were offered by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire). Over Monday and Tuesday, CalFire informed the public with many reports on the growing blaze. Wednesday morning, however, an operational update was uploaded at 9:00 am by CalFire.

“Division Papa (western front) got fairly active last night, down canyon winds early morning hours – 4:00 am or so. Started to push the fire around,” says Chris Watters, Operation Section Chief for the Zogg Incident, “…this part of the fire is going to start moving towards our highest priority.” After two and a half days, the Zogg Fire has grown to 51,955 acres in size. The fire was listed at zero percent containment as of 7:00 Tuesday morning, with the most recent update at 7:04 Wednesday morning with 7% containment (CalFire). 

In an article written by IOPscience in August of this year, researchers predicted that poor forest management and higher than normal temperatures are increasing the likelihood of extreme autumn wildfire conditions across California. “We report a substantial and statistically significant historical trend toward autumns which are increasingly conducive to enhanced wildfire risk across most of California. This observed increase in weather-driven autumn wildfire risk coincides with a strong and robust warming trend,” IOPscience then acknowledges a caveat, “climate change is only one of several factors driving California’s multi-year wildfire disaster. Nearly 88% of fires and 92% of burned area from autumn wildfires in California are human-caused, highlighting human ignition sources as key contributors.” 

More than 8,100 wildfires have killed 29 people, destroyed 7,200 structures, and burned 5,780 square miles in California’s record-breaking wildfire season this year. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Zogg Fire threatens the communities of Igo, Ono, Happy Valley, and Platina. There are currently 26 major wildfires scorching the California landscape, which includes the Creek Fire in Fresno and Madera counties, North Complex in Plumas county, and the Glass Fire in Sonoma and Napa counties. 

In a Monday press briefing, California Governor Gavin Newsom said that the Zogg Fire could merge with the August Complex, the largest wildfire in the history of California. The August Complex has burned 949,055 acres with 47% containment since mid-August. In contrast, the August Complex has burned eighteen times the acreage of the Zogg Fire. However, a cooling trend is expected to arrive over the weekend, which should lower temperatures and

raise humidity, according to the Daily Wildfire Report.

ARTICLE: EVAN STOGSDILL

EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE

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