UPDATE 8 p.m. — Forward progress on the “Mountain Fre” has been stopped and air resources have been released, and ground crews are putting in containment lines around the fire and “getting the edges cooled down,” Cal Fire Humboldt Unit Battalion Chief Ward told KMUD News. The grass fire reached around 25 acres in size, and was 20% contained, according the the Cal Fire incident update; the cause remains under investigation.
UPDATE 6 p.m. — The fire has grown to approximately 22 acres in size, and is located in rugged terrain west of the main stem of the Eel River, east of Bell Springs Road, and south of the “Island Mountain Train Station” and southeast Paloverde, in the vicinity of Island Mountain Road and Raff Creek Road. According to the most recent reporting from Lauren Schmitt at KMUD News at 5:45 p.m., one structure is threatened, and additional resources have been called in. The rate of spread of the fire may now be slowing, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Jeremy Ward told KMUD, and one portion may be “partially contained in an area where it reached a road.” The remote location and forested terrain is also presenting challenges for fire crews trying to reach the area.
MENDOCINO Co., 7/23/21 — A wildfire has begun in the vicinity of Island Mountain, and the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office has issued an advisory via Nixle. There are no structures threatened, and no current evacuation warnings or orders being called. Read the Nixle here.
A smoke plume is visible via the “Black Oak” camera on the PG&E wildfire cameras at alertwildfire.org.
This is a developing situation and information may change. We’ll update this article as more information becomes available. The most recent information will be updated at the top of the article, with the earlier reports below.
View of the wildfire from the PG&E wildfire camera system at 5:35 p.m.
Lauren Schmitt from KMUD News contributed to this report.
