Ponderosa, Ca

Size: 31,454 acres
Fire Start: August 29, 2017

Containment: 70 percent

Location: Highway 190, east of Springville

Total Personnel: 1,493

Cause: Human caused, under investigation

Resources: Crews 31, Helicopters 8, Engines 94, Dozers 17, Water Tenders 16
Announcement: Officials Downgrade Evacuation Orders for Communities Impacted by the Pier Fire

Effective 6:00 pm today, September 14, 2017, officials will downgrade evacuation orders from mandatory to voluntary for the following communities: Alpine Village, Camp Nelson, Cedar Slope, Doyle Springs, Mountain Aire, Rogers Camp, Pierpoint Springs, Sequoia Crest and Wishon. Please see the details at the top of this page under “Announcement”
Fire Summary:
Firing operations were again delayed due to recent thunderstorm activity that brought erratic winds and brief showers to some areas of the fire. Despite weather conditions, firefighters were able to hold the fire within the current perimeter. Crews continue to identify and address hazard trees and debris in Rogers Camp, Mountain Aire, as well as between Mahogany Flat and Pierpoint Springs on Highway 190.
Fire suppression repair is ongoing along dozer lines on the northern perimeter of the fire. Crews continue to mop-up and patrol fireline on the eastern edge near Camp Nelson. The 6 acre spot fire near Pierpoint Springs on the south side of Highway 190 has grown to 30 acres but is in an area that is inaccessible. Firefighters are monitoring this spot fire and planning a way to secure it to existing dozer lines, which may include additional firing when weather conditions are favorable.
Firefighters will continue to patrol and mop-up containment line along Forest Road 21S94 between Coy Flat Campground and Rogers Camp. Hazards along the roadway will be addressed today to prepare for residents gaining access to their cabins.
Firefighters will continue firing operations along the 2¼ Road south toward Pine Flat Road and south of Cow Mountain Road on the Tule River Indian Reservation when conditions allow. Smoke and fire may be visible from firing operations once they commence, as well as from interior pockets of vegetation.
Evacuations: See announcement above regarding a change in evacuations
Area Closures: Sequoia National Forest trails, roads, and lands around the Pier Fire are closed (Closure Order No. 0513-17-34, https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/5548/39662/. CAL FIRE has closed Mountain Home State Forest, and Tulare County has closed Balch Park. All areas are closed until the fire is brought under control. Suppression repair work will take additional time after the fire is contained; recreationists should plan ahead.
Hard Road Closures: The following roads are closed to all traffic:

Highway 190 east of Springville is closed at Upper Rio Vista Road to eastbound traffic.

Highway 190 north of Ponderosa is closed at Forest Road 21S50 to westbound traffic.
Smoke:

Daily updated information for the levels of smoke in communities affected by the Pier Fire can be found on the link on the right side of this page.

People with respiratory conditions, young children, and elderly people may be susceptible to adverse effects. Air District officials urge residents to follow their doctor’s advice. For more information, see https://www.cdc.gov/features/wildfires/index.html or http://valleyair.org/wildfires.htm

Basic Information

Current as of 9/14/2017, 8:02:51 AM

Incident Type Wildfire

Cause Human (under Investigation)

Date of Origin Tuesday August 29th, 2017 approx. 02:30 AM

Location Highway 190 at Wishon Road 7 miles east of Springville

Incident Commander Mike Minton, California Interagency Incident Management Team 5

Current Situation

Total Personnel 1,493

Size 31,454 Acres

Percent of Perimeter Contained 70%

Estimated Containment Date Wednesday September 20th, 2017 approx. 12:00 AM

Fuels Involved 

Primary fuels are dormant brush, hardwood slash, and closed timber litter. The fire is located in a heavy tree mortality area. The southern portion of the fire is burning in a location with little to no recorded fire history.

Significant Events 

Strong overnight relative humidity recovery limited active fire behavior to only very isolated, sheltered areas in the lower elevations, well away from control lines. Elsewhere, interior islands of unburned fuel showed smoldering. Heavy fuels over the highest terrain continued to consume completely, with low intensity surface fire.

Outlook

Planned Actions 

Provide structure protection for threatened communities and infrastructure. Hold, improve, and mop-up completed line. Perform firing operations as conditions allow to secure containment lines and values at risk.

Projected Incident Activity 

Remarks 

Pier Fire personnel and resources are available for initial attack should the need arise.

Current Weather

Weather Concerns 

Sunny with highs 77-82 below 3000 feet, 67-77 higher elevations. Minimum humidity 50-55% below 3000 feet and 65-75% higher elevations. Wind downslope 1-4 mph through 8 am then becoming upslope/upcanyon 3-6 mph with gusts to 15 mph after noon. Ridge wind northwest 12-16 mph.

Inciweb

Size: 30,390 acres

Fire Start: August 29, 2017

Containment: 60 percent

Location: Highway 190, east of Springville

Total Personnel: 1,650

Cause: Human caused, under investigation

Resources: Crews 34, Helicopters 8, Engines 123, Dozers 18, Water Tenders 15
Fire Summary: Firefighters continued to make good progress yesterday and into the evening. Fire suppression repair continues along dozer lines on the northern perimeter of the fire. Crews continued to mop-up and patrol fireline on the eastern edge near Camp Nelson. There was a small spot fire—approximately 6 acres—near Pierpoint Springs on the south side of Highway 190. The spot fire was contained using helicopters and hand crews. The spot will be monitored and mopped-up today to ensure it remains contained.
Firefighters will continue to patrol and mop-up containment line along Forest Road 21S94 between Coy Flat Campground and Rogers Camp. On the eastern perimeter of the fire there may be increased smoke due to interior pockets of vegetation burning.
Firing operations will continue today along the 2¼ Road south toward Pine Flat Road on the Tule River Indian Reservation. Firefighters will also be conducting a firing operation along Cow Mountain Road. Smoke and fire will likely be visible within containment lines as interior pockets of vegetation continue to burn. The rain that fell on the fire last night was concentrated primarily on the eastern edge of the fire, and didn’t hamper any burning operations on the southern edge.
Later this morning, be sure to watch the video of Operations Chief Keith Gurrola describe the strategy for continuing firing operations on the Tule River Indian Reservation on the SQF facebook page.

Weather: A low pressure system will move northward today along the coast and then move inland across Central California on Wednesday. A south to southwest flow aloft will allow for one more day of a thunderstorm threat however the greatest threat will remain east of the fire on Tuesday. Temperatures will be 85 to 90 degrees below 3,000 feet, relative humidity will range from 30 to 35 %. Winds will be out of the southeast from 3-6 mph.
Evacuations: Tulare County has two levels of evacuations: voluntary and mandatory. There are currently no voluntary evacuations. Mandatory evacuations are issued when the fire poses an imminent threat to life and property. The following communities are under mandatory evacuation: Sequoia Crest, Mountain Aire, Rogers Camp, Pierpoint Springs, Cedar Slope, Camp Nelson, Doyle Springs, Alpine Village and Wishon.

Area Closures: Sequoia National Forest trails, roads, and lands around the Pier Fire are closed (Closure Order No. 0513-17-34, https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/article/5548/39662/. CAL FIRE has closed Mountain Home State Forest, and Tulare County has closed Balch Park. All areas are closed until the fire is brought under control. Suppression repair work will take additional time after the fire is contained; recreationists should plan ahead.

Hard Road Closures: The following roads are closed to all traffic:

Cow Mountain Road at its intersection with Rio Vista Road.

Highway 190 east of Springville is closed at Upper Rio Vista Road to eastbound traffic.

Highway 190 north of Ponderosa is closed at Forest Road 21S50 to westbound traffic.
Smoke: Today’s weather will be characterized by instability in the atmosphere providing good dispersion conditions. Smoke from today’s planned aerial ignitions is expected to loft high and move north. Bishop may see impacts this afternoon with possible moderate conditions through tonight. Communities along western foothills should generally see clearing this evening.

Daily updated information for the levels of smoke in communities affected by the Pier Fire; http://wildlandfiresmoke.net/outlooks/2017/Pier#Main

People with respiratory conditions, young children, and elderly people may be susceptible to adverse effects. Air District officials urge residents to follow their doctor’s advice. For more information, see https://www.cdc.gov/features/wildfires/index.html or http://valleyair.org/wildfires.htm
Basic Information

Current as of 9/12/2017, 7:55:02 AM

Incident Type Wildfire

Cause Under Investigation

Date of Origin Tuesday August 29th, 2017 approx. 02:30 AM

Location Highway 190 at Wishon Road 7 miles East of Springville

Incident Commander Mike Minton, CIIMT5 Jeff McLaughlin (TC), Derek Staberg (CalFire TUU)

Current Situation

Total Personnel 1,650

Size 30,390 Acres

Percent of Perimeter Contained 60%

Estimated Containment Date Wednesday September 20th, 2017 approx. 12:00 AM

Fuels Involved 

Dormant Brush, Hardwood slash, timber, including areas affected by tree mortality. Fire is located in a heavy timber mortality area. The southern portion of the fire is burning in a location with little to no recorded fire history.

Outlook

Planned Actions 

Provide structure protection for threatened communities and infrastructure. Construct direct and indirect containment line where feasible. Plan and construct contingency line.

Projected Incident Activity 

A full suppression strategy is to be implemented on the Pier Fire. Values at risk associated with the incident include human safety, private property, and associated improvements, electrical power infrastructure, Giant Sequoia groves, and cultural values. Minimize acres burned on privately owned and tribal lands. Apply tactics on public lands that offer the highest probability of success.
Inciweb