Mendocino fires wind down; efforts continue on National Forest

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NORTH COAST – Fires around the North Coast continue to wind down, with Mendocino County's devastating fires scheduled to be contained this week and firefighters continuing to make progress on blazes in the Mendocino National Forest.


Cal Fire reported that the Mendocino Lightning Complex in Mendocino County had reached 95-percent containment on Tuesday, with 53,300 acres burned.


Four fires of the more than 120 sparked in lightning fires last month continue to burn, Cal Fire reported. More than 2,200 firefighter remain assigned to the complex, which has cost officials nearly $40 million to fight.


The fires had been a major source of smoke in Lake County's air basin over the last several weeks. While some residual smoke is expected to remain, Air Pollution Control Officer Bob Reynolds said the county's air quality is in the good to moderate range.


On the Mendocino National Forest's Upper Lake Ranger District, firefighters had the Soda Complex of fires near Lake Pillsbury at 70-percent containment on Tuesday, according to Forest Service spokesperson Phebe Brown. The fires have burned 7,645 acres.


Three of the complex's four fires are now contained, the latest being the 1,829-acre Monkey Rock Fire. Still actively burning is the Mill Fire at 1,978 acres at 63-percent containment, Brown said.


Also on the Mendocino National Forest, the complex of fires in the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness had burned 21,963 acres by Monday, with firefighters positioned near the Yellow Fire to protect private property at Henthorne Lake and historical properties to the southwest of the fire, according to Brown.


For more information about the forest fires visit Forest Service Web site at www.fs.fed.us/r5/mendocino or www.inciweb.org. For information about other fires around the state, visit www.cdf.ca.gov.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..


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