MENDOCINO CO., 05/01/26 — Four firefighters were injured Friday during a planned operation to reduce wildfire risk near Covelo, Cal Fire said.
Two members of Cal Fire’s Mendocino Unit were taken by helicopter to the Firefighters Burn Institute Regional Burn Center at the University of California, Davis, the fire agency said.
Two others were taken to the Adventist Health Howard Memorial hospital in Willits, Cal Fire said.
The extent of their injuries wasn’t disclosed. All four were expected to recover, Cal Fire spokesman David Acuna said.
The fires are being conducted in the northeastern portion of Mendocino County, east of U.S. Highway 101, and south of the town of Covelo.
Cal Fire said the South Covelo Prescribed Burn was intended to create “a mosaic of variously burned vegetation and islands of unburned habitat,” creating fuel breaks.
The burn began April 27 targeting about 1,000 acres of chaparral and understory vegetation within oak woodlands and mixed evergreen habitats, Cal Fire said in a press release.
“This project burn will be conducted under strictly controlled weather and fuel conditions,” Cal Fire said April 23.
Fires were expected to be conducted intermittently from about 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, depending on weather, ending no later than May 15, Cal Fire said.