HomeMy WebLinkAbout09.28.20 Email from Andy Picket - Monday EOC Update
From:Pickett, Andy
To:Alpert, Bruce;Bennett, Robin;Clerk of the Board;Connelly, Bill;Cook, Holly;Lambert, Steve;Lucero, Debra;
McCracken, Shari;Paulsen, Shaina;Pickett, Andy;Ring, Brian;Ritter, Tami;Rodas, Amalia;Sweeney, Kathleen;
Teeter, Doug
Subject:Monday EOC Update
Date:Monday, September 28, 2020 5:08:16 PM
Attachments:NORTH COMPLEX FIRE Situation Status Report 20200928.pdf
Board Members,
It has been an eventful 24 hours; yesterday evening the portion of the fire being managed by the US
Forest Service jumped the line and the fire made a run toward Storrie, in the Feather River Canyon.
That prompted the evacuation orders and warnings last night. Fortunately, the fire did not run.
However, the fire remains in the area, and until that line is contained, the risk to Concow, Upper
Ridge, and Paradise will be present. Today CAL FIRE and USFS incident commanders met to develop
a strategy to jointly eliminate this threat. Meanwhile, the EOC has developed plans for a mass
evacuation of Paradise and the Upper Ridge should it become necessary. The Temporary Evacuation
Point would be in Oroville, to allow for faster evacuation including contra flow on the freeway.
Resources are being staged as part of the plan.
Repopulation into other areas of the fire continues, and areas under warning and orders are being
evaluated daily to assess the reasonableness of downgrading or ending the evacuations.
The CAL FIRE Incident Management Team that has been here since early this month is being
reassigned to one of the more active fires in the state. They will work through tomorrow and leave
on Wednesday morning. At that point the incident will be managed by the CAL FIRE Butte Unit, with
added resources of the Paradise, Butte County, and Gridley Fire Departments.
Sheltering continues to be non congregate, and after a few days of decreasing numbers, we had an
uptick yesterday, to coincide with the new orders. We anticipate the numbers to decrease again as
more areas are relieved of their evacuation status.
Our small animal shelters are at capacity, and we are working on opening a third shelter. This is a top
priority, since evacuees who bring their small pets cannot be placed until their pets are sheltered.
PG&E is in the process of restoring power, and as of this time 8,000 customers out of the 10,000
that were shut down have now been re-energized. PG&E aims to have all restored by the end of the
day.
I am attaching today’s Sit Stat Report, which includes all the facts and statistics.
The EOC will be going virtual tonight. I remain on duty until 0800 tomorrow, at which point Brian will
be the Director.
Andy
NORTH COMPLEX FIRE Situation Status Report (2020-09-28; 1418hrs)
BUTTE COUNTY EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER (EOC)
Preliminary Incident Information
North Complex West Zone fire is part of the overall North Complex Fire burning in Butte and Plumas counties. Additional
incident information is available at the following sites:
https://www.facebook.com/CALFIREButteCo/?ref=nf&hc_ref=ARRXhE1CmotDxPkUffsNeGf_vJlBeGOucGSU0xCJ6HvN3
MiG0p5s-S3HLYu3Sa8WVCI&__tn__=%3C-R
https://www.facebook.com/USFSPlumas/photos/pcb.3392351700825762/3392342777493321/?type=3&theater
https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6997/
Fatalities: 15
Injuries: 2 (First Responder)
Assessed Structures Destroyed or Damaged 2,455
Actual Structures Destroyed 2,342
o Destroyed Residential – 1523
o Destroyed Commercial – 59
o Other Destroyed – 760
Actual Structures Damaged 113
o Damaged Residential – 51
o Damaged Commercial – 5
o Damaged Other – 57
Here is a link to the Structure Damage Map: https://tinyurl.com/y3jmzxnj
Estimated Acres Burned in the North Complex West Zone: 84,595 acres (in SRA) with 88% containment. Note that the North
Complex West Zone is based on operational boundaries, not Butte County boundary lines. In Butte County specifically, the total
acreage burned is estimated at 96,014. Total acres burned in the overall North Complex Fire covering Butte and Plumas
counties is 306,135 acres with 78% containment.
Map link: https://www.facebook.com/CALFIREButteCo/photos/pcb.1908841235924250/1908841109257596/?type=3&theater
1
Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
Resources:
Engines – 126; Water Tenders – 42; Helicopters – 16; Hand Crews – 43; Dozers – 27; Masticators – 19; Total Personnel – 1723.
Butte, Plumas, and Yuba County Sheriff’s Offices, California Highway Patrol, Sierra Pacific Industries, W.M. Beaty, PG&E,
California Conservation Corps, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, North Valley Animal Disaster Group,
California State Parks and Recreation, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, KonKow Valley Band of Maidu,
Berry Creek Rancheria, Mooretown Rancheria, Soper-Wheeler and Union Pacific Railroad, CAL Trans, Cal OES, Butte County
OEM and California National Guard. Out of State Resources include Michigan, Utah, New Mexico and Canada from out of
Country.
Current Situation:
On the afternoon of September 8, 2020 the North Complex fire entered Butte County with a vengeance, driven by extreme
winds, heavy dry fuels, and steep terrain. The North Complex Fire is broken into three (3) zones: North, South, and West. The
North and South Zone are managed by the United States Forest Service. The West Zone is managed by CAL FIRE Incident
Management Team 4.
As predicted the wind did present itself again last night, fortunately there were no new spark ups overnight in the West Zone.
All lines are currently holding, and fire crews continue to mop up and patrol the area for hot spots. Last night fire crews did
stage as they did the previous night, along with crews in place to assist the fire fighters in the North Zone should they need
assistance. The North Zone did cause some trouble last night, but fortunately need not progress as far as predicted. Crews will
be working on strategies for cutting in new lines to contain the growth.
During the daylight hours today firefighters will continue to mop up hotspots in the West Zone and reinforce lines as needed.
Yesterday crews did start the demobilization process, but with flare ups in Napa and Shasta Counties resources may be
relocated.
A fire weather watch is in effect through Monday. The critically dry fuel makes the vegetation extremely receptive to fire. An
area of high pressure will build across the fire area Saturday, where it will remain for the next week. The result will be
increased temperatures, and much lower humidity. Strong northeast winds are expected into Monday. A Red Flag Warning is in
effect until noon Monday.
PSPS:
PG&E continues to monitor the wind event. The number of customers in Butte County currently effected by the PSPS is 11,784.
PG&E is still waiting for the all clear to start patrols checking for any damaged lines in Butte County. All areas are estimated to
be re-energized by today (09.28.2020) at 10 pm, provided weather conditions remain as predicted and pending any repairs.
The following CRC’s have been closed due to the fire evacuations and orders:
Magalia – Magalia Pines Baptist Church
Paradise – Craig Memorial Congregational Church
CRC’s remain open in the following communities:
Forest Ranch – American Veterans Store
Oroville - Southside Community Center (indoor, with COVID guidelines)
Bangor – Community Center (indoor, with COVID guidelines)
Here is a link to the PSPS website: https://pgealerts.alerts.pge.com/updates/
Weather:
Today (Magalia): Widespread haze and smoke. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. Winds 5 to 10 mph out of the northeast and
humidity near 14%. Tonight (Magalia): Widespread haze and smoke. Clear skies with a low of 64. Winds 10 to 15 mph from the
northeast, with humidity increasing slightly to 21%. Tuesday (Magalia): Widespread haze and smoke. Sunny skies, with a high
2
Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
of 88, south winds 5 to 10 mph and humidity dropping to 19%. For specific smoke impacts to your area, visit
https://www.airnow.gov/
The National Weather Service in Sacramento has issued a Red Flag Warning, which is in effect through tonight (09.28.2020) at
9 PM. Red Flag Warning Continues Through 9 PM with gusty north to east wind combined with low humidity will continue
critical fire weather conditions over much of interior Northern California today into tonight. Wind decreases in most areas by
tonight, with lighter wind expected through the rest of the week. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect.
Information Board Locations:
Holiday Market – 6848 Lower Skyway, Paradise
Savemart – 6636 Clark Road, Paradise
Save-Mor Foods – 14001 Lakeridge Circle, Magalia
Stirling City Volunteer Co. 12 – 17084 Skyway, Stirling City
Yankee Hill Hardware – 11300A Miller Flat Rd, Oroville
Raley’s – 2325 Myers St, Oroville
Food Maxx – 1160 Oro Dam Blvd, Oroville
WalMart – 465 Cal Oak Rd, Oroville
rd
Home Depot – 2150 3 St, Oroville
Feather Falls Casino – 3 Alverda Dr, Oroville
Gold Country Casino – 4020 Olive Hwy, Oroville
Fire Damage Assessment
Damage assessments provided by CAL FIRE’s Damage Inspection Team were completed and the final totals are 2,455 assessed
structures with 2,342 destroyed and 113 damaged. See page 1 for additional information. A link to the Structure Damage Map
. Messaging has gone out on what to look for when returning
can be found through this link: https://tinyurl.com/y3jmzxnj
home after a wildfire. Here is a link to that information: https://www.readyforwildfire.org/post-wildfire/ .
County Safety Assessment
The County Safety Assessment Team is focusing on assessing standing structures that may pose potential threats to the public
upon re-entry. The team is placing color (Green-Yellow-Red) coded placards on each structure to indicate its safety level.
Summary of placards posted by the County are as follows:
Green Placard: INSPECTED – Lawful Occupancy Permitted is posted noting no apparent structural hazard has been
found and is safe to occupy.
Yellow Placard: RESTRICTED USE is posted noting there has been damage resulting in some form of restriction to the
continued occupancy. The restrictions for use will be noted on the placard.
Red Placard: UNSAFE – Do Not Enter or Occupy is posted to note the structure has been damaged such that
continued occupancy poses a threat to life safety. Buildings or structures posted with this placard shall not be entered
except as authorized in writing by the Building Department. Safety assessment teams shall be authorized to enter
these buildings. This placard is not to be used or considered as a demolition order.
LEGEND for TABLE of overall inspections performed.
Commercial Structures - CS
Single Family Dwellings - SFD
Manufactured Housing Units- MHU
Utility Structures (over 120sq ft)- US
Motorhome - MH
(These numbers are as of Friday, September 25, 2020)
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Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
One School was issued a Red placard
Law Enforcement
Butte County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) deputies, staff and mutual aid continue to patrol evacuated areas and support road blocks
to inhibit people from entering the burned areas. BCSO has responded to 192 welfare check requests for persons. Of those
requests, all are accounted for, but unfortunately there are 15 fatalities. BCSO did send out new evacuation orders and
warnings last night due to the move of the fire in the North Zone. Many of the evacuation orders and warnings will be adjusted
this morning as new information of the fire is received.
BCSO continues to run a call center to assist residents who do not have access to the internet to be able to obtain information
on evacuation orders and warnings in their area. The call center is staffed by volunteers and open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Monday thru Sunday (7 days a week), until it is no longer needed.
BCSO has added a link to their web page for the escort program. Residents can click the “Sheriff’s Online Escort Request
Submission” link which will take them through 3 waivers before being able to enter their information for service. Residents can
also call the BCSO call center to request an escort. This service will enable residents to enter their property for 15 minutes
which can be decreased depending on conditions of the area and movement of the fire. To date Sheriff’s personnel has been
able to accommodate approximately 150 of the requests.
Evacuation Orders (September 28, 2020 10:00am)
There have been no changes, evacuation orders remain in effect for:
The area west of Oro-Quincy Hwy, from Seminole Drive north to the Butte County Line, Pulga, Concow, Yankee Hill
and Big Bend.
Evacuation Warnings:
Butte County Sheriff’s Office has issued the following Evacuation Warnings:
The areas on both sides of Oro-Quincy Hwy from Whispering Chapel Lane north to Seminole Drive and the area east of
Oro-Quincy Hwy from Seminole Drive north to the Butte County line.
The area of Broken Springs Rd south of Ponderosa Reservoir
The community of Magalia
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Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
The community of Stirling City
The Town of Paradise
Clark Rd from the Paradise Town limits south to Hwy 70, east to lake Oroville, to include Pentz Rd from the Paradise
Town limits south to Hwy 70
Evacuation orders and warnings can be found on the Butte County web page.
https://www.buttecounty.net/
As of September 27, 2020 2300hrs
Map link: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1UU7WvAOESDgfIGHz_y_W670LmrbMxVn-
&ll=39.74468695933857%2C-121.42612106301793&z=11
Road Closures
Oro Quincy Hwy @ Whispering Chapel Lane
Encina Grande @ Deer Meadow Rd
Simmons Rd @ Big Ridge Rd
Stephens Ridge Rd @ Oro Quincy Hwy
Broken Springs Rd @ Ponderosa Way
SR 70 @ Cherokee Rd
Coutolenc Rd @ Jordan Hill Rd
This information is posted at: http://www.buttecounty.net/
Local Assistance Center (LAC)
The LAC is located at the address noted below with hours of operation and will remain open for at least three (3) weeks.
Effective today Monday, September 28, 2020 the LAC hours will decrease, please see adjusted hours below.
1875 Feather River Blvd.
Oroville, CA 95966
Hours: Mon-Fri. 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Sat. 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Sun. Closed
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Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
4 Day Total Customers and Applications (totals as of Saturday, September 26, 2020):
Customers: 1121
Applications: 828
(Please note, these are not FEMA applications)
Non-Congregate Sheltering
Currently there are 555 individuals in hotel rooms, equating to 259 rooms.
The hotline continues to be a valuable resource to residents as it has handled 1,452 calls to date. Overnight as new evacuation
warnings and orders were issued residents were and still are encouraged to call the hotline for sheltering needs.
Public Health
Public Health has reached out to the long term care facilities that were affected by the new evacuations warnings and orders.
Animal Evacuation Centers
Large Animal Shelter
Camelot Equestrian Park
1985 Clark Road, Paradise
This shelter is accepting animals between 7:30am and 8:00pm.
Small Animal Shelters
Old County Hospital
2279 Del Oro and Mono Ste E, Oroville
This shelter is currently at capacity and cannot accept additional animals at this time.
521 Cal Oak Rd, Oroville
This shelter is currently accepting small, domestic animals between 8:00am and 8:00pm.
A third small animal shelter will open at the Gridley Fair Grounds. Currently logistics is working with Animal Control to set this
up.
Total Animals in Shelters (Totals as of Sunday, September 27, 2020)
433 (Camelot: 207, Del Oro: 110 and Cal Oaks: 116)
Animal Control continues to need additional staff. Texas A&M did arrive yesterday to start training to take over some of the
middle management duties. Cal OES sent out an EMMA again this morning requesting animal care specialist and they have
received some response.
Unclaimed Animals
The Pet Harbor website is showing animals that have been rescued from the North Complex Fire and have not been claimed by
their owners.
The deceased large animal removal is open for residents, law enforcement and fire crews to call or email with requests.
Residents can call (530)895-0000 or email largerecovery@buttecounty.net
Public Works
Public Works have guardrail crews on Oro Quincy Hwy today. They have started patrolling for downed trees due to the wind
event. Also, due to the movement of the fire in the North Zone they have started moving equipment out of the Paradise area
to ensure its safe keeping.
Donations
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, no physical donations are being accepted. North Valley Community Foundation has set up a
fund.
USFS Forest Closures
A USFS order prohibits the use of any ignition (campfires, gas stoves, etc.) and the closure of all developed campgrounds and
day-use sites on National Forests in California. The Plumas NF partially reopened today. Please refer to attached news release
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Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs
titled: Plumas National Forest Reopens, dated 09.18.2020. For up to date information on both Plumas and Lassen NF please
refer to these links: Plumas NF https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/plumas/alerts-notices
Lassen NF: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/lassen/alerts-notices
FEMA Public Assistance Status
Designated Areas: Disaster 5363; Public Assistance, Category B (PA-B). This is the Emergency Work, Category B: Emergency
protective measures https://www.fema.gov/disaster/5363/designated-areas . More info on categories can be found at this
FEMA Fact Sheet: https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/fema_public-assistance-fact-sheet_10-2019_0.pdf
END OF REPORT
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Report prepared by: April BarnesButte County EOC – North Complex Fire
Documentation, Plans Intel Situation Status Report 2020-09-28, 1418 hrs