California wildfires – Dixie and River Fire updates

The River Fire in northern California exploded in size on August 4, 2021, as it burned through the Nevada and Placer counties, triggering multiple evacuations. The fire has so far scorched 566 ha (1 400 acres) of land and is 0% contained.

On the same day, the Dixie Fire entered the town of Greenville, leveling homes and businesses. Jake Cagle, incident management team operations section chief, said some residents did not heed the evacuation order, and firefighters were getting them out of harm's way instead of being able to focus on defending structures.

This fire is burning in Plumas and Butte counties since July 14. It scorched 112 500 ha (278 000 acres) of land and is currently the largest wildfire in California. It has so far destroyed at least 67 structures and is only 35% contained. As of August 4, it's the eighth-largest wildfire in California's recorded history.

The 2021 fire season in California has so far burned 234 561 ha (579 614 acres) of land in 6 049 wildfires without any loss of life. At least 400 structures were damaged and destroyed.

Image credit: NASA Terra/MODIS, TW. Acquired August 4, 2021