Single Publication

Location: Humboldt County, CA., Approx. 8 miles south of Willow Creek

Size: 4,033 acres

Containment: 0%

Start Date: July 15, 2024 at 5:40 PM

Cause : Under investigation

Hill Fire Community Meeting, today, July 18, 2024, 7 p.m. at the Veterans Hall, Willow Creek, CA.

Current Situation:

Yesterday, fire activity moderated compared to previous days. Fire managers are using a full suppression strategy with crews going direct where possible while also utilizing indirect tactics in areas that pose a potential risk to firefighter safety. A few spot fires were identified to the north along Friday Ridge and resources on scene began constructing direct and indirect containment lines. Crews constructed dozer lines to the west and north of the fire. Aircraft continued to perform retardant drops along the perimeter of the fire. 

Today, the primary focus will be to the north of the fire where crews will scout for possible opportunities to construct direct dozer line south of Route 1. Firefighters will also conduct firing operations along Route 1 to strengthen the potential containment line along Friday Ridge. Aircraft will continue to perform retardant drops to slow the spread of the fire. Federal and state air resources on scene include helicopters, air tankers, and air attack. Fire behavior is expected to be moderate today with continued dry conditions. The North Coast Interagency Type 3 Incident Management Team and CAL FIRE Incident Management Team 2 are now fully integrated and working in unified command. 

Fire camp will be at the Veterans Park in Willow Creek, CA., beginning today, July 18, 2024.

Evacuation Information:

Evacuation order and warnings remain in effect. For current updates on evacuations, visit https://www.facebook.com/HumboldtSheriff and https://humboldtgov.org/2383/Current-Emergencies. Conditions are subject to change at any time, visit https://protect.genasys.com/search for a full zone description. 

Sign up for Humboldt Alert emergency notifications at https://humboldtgov.org/2014/Emergency-Notifications

Closures:

Forest Closure Order currently in effect for the area impacted by the Hill Fire. It is temporarily prohibited to be on any national forest system land, trail, or road within the closure area. To view the closure order and map of closure area visit the following link www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1191963.pdf

Road closures are currently in place on Friday Ridge Rd. at Forest Service Route 6N06, Friday Ridge Rd. at Forest Route 5N01 and Friday Fridge Rd. at Forest Route 5N04.

Fire Restrictions:

Forest fire restrictions currently in effect across the Six Rivers National Forest. Campfires and stove fires are restricted to those developed areas listed in the forest order located at https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1188610.pdf. 

Smoking, welding, and operating an internal combustion engine also have restrictions in place.