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Rough Fire

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Coordinates: 36°52′26″N 118°54′18″W / 36.874°N 118.905°W / 36.874; -118.905
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Rough Fire
Thick gray smoke billows upward from an entire mountainside ablaze, partially reflected in a river in the foreground
The Rough Fire burning on a mountainside in September 2015
Date(s)
  • July 31 (31-07) –
  • November 5, 2015 (2015-11-05)
  • (98 days)
Location
Coordinates36°52′26″N 118°54′18″W / 36.874°N 118.905°W / 36.874; -118.905
Statistics[1]
Burned area151,623 acres (61,360 ha; 237 sq mi; 614 km2)
Impacts
Deaths0
Non-fatal injuries12
Evacuated>2,500
Structures destroyed4
Damage
  • $120.9 million
  • (equivalent to about $152 million in 2023)
Ignition
CauseLightning strike
Map
The footprint of the Rough Fire in Fresno County largely lay within Sierra and Sequoia National Forests, but extended partly into Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks
The footprint of the Rough Fire, which largely remained in the Sierra National Forest and Sequoia National Forest
The fire burned in the Sierra Nevada, Fresno County, in Central California
The fire burned in the Sierra Nevada, Fresno County, in Central California
The general location of the fire in Central California

The Rough Fire was a major wildfire in Fresno County, California, and the largest of the 2015 California wildfire season. The fire was ignited by a lightning strike on July 31 and burned 151,623 acres (61,360 ha), largely in the Sierra National Forest and the Sequoia National Forest, before it was declared contained on November 6, 2015.[2][1][3] At the time it occurred, the fire was the thirteenth largest in recorded California history.

The Rough Fire destroyed four structures and caused zero fatalities. Twelve injuries were recorded among the firefighters that responded to the incident, who numbered more than 3,700 at peak staffing in mid-September. The effort to contain the fire cost an estimated $120 million.

Background

[edit]

A severe and multi-year drought worsened wildfire risk in California in 2015.[4] The drought and ensuing bark beetle predation on weakened trees contributed to the accumulation of over ten million dead trees in the southern Sierra Nevada by the time of the fire.[5] In addition to these factors, there was little prior fire history—natural or intentional burns—in the area, in some cases extending back 150 years.[6]

Progression

[edit]

July 31–August 31

[edit]

The Rough Fire was begun by a lightning strike in the evening hours of Friday, July 31, 2015. The location of the fire's ignition was in the southern Sierra National Forest, partway up Deer Ridge between Rough Creek and Deer Creek in the upper drainage of the Kings River. It was first detected by the Buck Rock fire lookout in Sequoia National Forest to the south, and the location of the fire was triangulated with the help of several other lookouts. Lightning touched off several other fires in the region that night, but all were quickly contained.[4][7][8]

The Rough Fire—dubbed as such for its initial proximity to Rough Creek,[9] in typical wildfire naming fashion[10]—owed its survival to its rugged and remote location; there were no roads or trails that ground crews could use to access the fire. The section of the Kings Canyon drainage in question contained slopes of eighty to ninety degrees, too steep for ground crews to work safely in. Forest Service experts considered the chances of quelling the fire with air power alone impracticable.[4][11]

By August 6, a week after ignition, authorities reported the fire as having burned 500 acres (200 ha) with no containment.[7] By Tuesday, August 11, it had grown to more than 5,000 acres (2,000 ha).[12]

September 1–31

[edit]
Thin gray smoke spreads out from an unseen fire burning on steep, scrubby mountainside across a valley from the picture's vantage point
The Rough Fire as viewed on August 8—the area this picture was taken from burned one week later

On September 2, over 2,500 people were safely evacuated from Hume Lake Christian Camps and surrounding area. All camp events were cancelled and only security personnel remained.[13][14]

On September 5, the fire reached Kings Canyon National Park as it crossed the 85,800-acre (347 km2) mark.[15]

On September 7, a severely burned firefighter was airlifted to the Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno.[16]

On September 10, officials at Kings Canyon National Park began evacuating all visitors and employees from the Wilsonia and General Grant Grove areas. A mandatory evacuation order was issued for Dunlap, effective September 11.[17]

On September 14, moisture and lower temperatures associated with the remnants of Hurricane Linda arrived in the southern Sierra.[4] Light rain fell in Sierra/Sequoia National Forests and Kings Canyon, allowing firefighters to access the fire directly instead of preparing control lines at a distance.[18]

On September 15, as the fire slowed and with favorable weather conditions, evacuation orders and warnings in Dunlap and Squaw Valley were lifted.[19] By that time, 3,742 firefighters, 345 engines, 19 helicopters and 45 bulldozers had been deployed.[20]

October 1 onwards

[edit]

The Rough Fire was declared 100 percent contained on November 6, and then declared controlled sometime later in the month.[2] The total cost of the firefighting effort was estimated by the National Interagency Coordination Center at $120.93 million.[21]: 9 

The fire was, at the time it occurred, the thirteenth largest in recorded California history[9] and the largest in the history of Fresno County.[18] It no longer numbers among even the twenty largest fires in the state.[22]

Effects

[edit]

The Rough Fire destroyed four structures.[4] One of these was the Kings Canyon Lodge off Highway 180 in Kings Canyon National Park.[23]

More than one hundred giant sequoia trees died in the Rough Fire.[24]

The total number of evacuees reached more than 2,500 on August 20, following the fire's leap across the Kings River and Highway 180.[25]

On September 11, Fresno health officials reported an unprecedented increase in hospital emergency department visits due to respiratory problems, and urged residents to avoid outdoor activities when the air is smoky.[26]

Area by ownership

[edit]

As of October 6, 2015, the total burned area breaks down into:[3]

Owner Acres Km2
Sequoia National Forest 82,573 334.2
Sierra National Forest 58,541 236.9
Kings Canyon National Park 9,413 38.1
Private lands 1,090 4.4
State lands 6 0.0
Total 151,623 613.6

Growth and containment

[edit]
Fire containment status Gray: contained; Red: active; %: percent contained;
Date Total area burned Personnel Containment
Jul 31 ... ... ...
Aug 1 ... ... ...
Aug 2[27] 26 acres (11 ha) ...
0%
Aug 3[27] 65 acres (26 ha) ...
0%
Aug 4 ... ... ...
Aug 5[27] 450 acres (182 ha) ...
Aug 6[7] 500 acres (202 ha) 274 personnel
Aug 7[27] 975 acres (395 ha) ...
Aug 8[28] 1,200 acres (486 ha) 321 personnel
0%
Aug 9[27] 3,770 acres (1,526 ha) ...
Aug 10[27] 5,217 acres (2,111 ha) ...
Aug 11[27] 6,815 acres (2,758 ha) ...
Aug 12[27] 9,918 acres (4,014 ha) ...
Aug 13 ... ... ...
Aug 14[27] 13,267 acres (5,369 ha) ...
Aug 15 ... ... ...
Aug 16[27] 16,258 acres (6,579 ha) ...
Aug 17[29] 20,978 acres (8,489 ha) 1,064 personnel
0%
Aug 18[30] 23,600 acres (9,551 ha) 1,098 personnel
0%
Aug 19[31] 30,901 acres (12,505 ha) 1,141 personnel
3%
Aug 20[32] 32,414 acres (13,117 ha) 1,501 personnel
3%
Aug 21[33] 39,400 acres (15,945 ha) 1,605 personnel
3%
Aug 22[34] 47,079 acres (19,052 ha) 1,484 personnel
3%
Aug 23[35] 47,396 acres (19,180 ha) 2,275 personnel
7%
Aug 24[36] 49,440 acres (20,008 ha) 2,126 personnel
17%
Aug 25[37] 51,794 acres (20,960 ha) 1,984 personnel
17%
Aug 26[38] 55,900 acres (22,622 ha) 2,152 personnel
21%
Aug 27[39] 55,989 acres (22,658 ha) 2,051 personnel
25%
Aug 28[40] 60,238 acres (24,377 ha) 2,033 personnel
25%
Aug 29[41] 61,316 acres (24,814 ha) 2,068 personnel
25%
Aug 30[42] 66,542 acres (26,929 ha) 2,121 personnel
25%
Aug 31[43] 72,300 acres (29,259 ha) 2,121 personnel
25%
Sep 1[44] 77,287 acres (31,277 ha) 2,121 personnel
25%
Sep 2[45] 79,973 acres (32,364 ha) 1,901 personnel
25%
Sep 3[46] 81,549 acres (33,002 ha) 1,901 personnel
25%
Sep 4[47] 83,464 acres (33,777 ha) 1,902 personnel
25%
Sep 5[48] 85,894 acres (34,760 ha) 2,038 personnel
25%
Sep 6[49] 85,894 acres (34,760 ha) 1,967 personnel
31%
Sep 7[50] 95,183 acres (38,519 ha) 1,940 personnel
31%
Sep 8[51] 97,884 acres (39,612 ha) 1,960 personnel
31%
Sep 9[52] 103,244 acres (41,781 ha) 1,900 personnel
31%
Sep 10[53] 110,134 acres (44,570 ha) 1,900 personnel
29%
Sep 11[54] 119,069 acres (48,186 ha) 2,229 personnel
29%
Sep 12[55] 128,796 acres (52,122 ha) 2,570 personnel
29%
Sep 13[56] 129,877 acres (52,559 ha) 2,961 personnel
31%
Sep 14[57] 138,053 acres (55,868 ha) 3,073 personnel
40%
Sep 15[58] 139,133 acres (56,305 ha) 3,741 personnel
40%
Sep 16[59] 140,760 acres (56,964 ha) 3,742 personnel
67%
Sep 17[60] 141,036 acres (57,075 ha) 2,267 personnel
67%
Sep 18[61] 141,201 acres (57,142 ha) 1,411 personnel
68%
Sep 19[62] 141,491 acres (57,259 ha) 1,493 personnel
68%
Sep 20[63] 141,599 acres (57,303 ha) 1,381 personnel
68%
Sep 21[64] 141,950 acres (57,445 ha) 1,495 personnel
70%
Sep 22[65] 142,629 acres (57,720 ha) 1,510 personnel
70%
Sep 23[66] 143,559 acres (58,096 ha) 1,334 personnel
75%
Sep 24[67] 143,559 acres (58,096 ha) 1,070 personnel
77%
Sep 25[68] 143,559 acres (58,096 ha) 935 personnel
79%
Sep 26[69] 150,876 acres (61,057 ha) 787 personnel
85%
Sep 27[70] 150,876 acres (61,057 ha) 654 personnel
85%
Sep 28[71] 151,493 acres (61,307 ha) 651 personnel
85%
Sep 29 ... ... ...
Sep 30[72] 151,623 acres (61,360 ha) 344 personnel
85%
... ... ... ...
Nov 6[2] 151,623 acres (61,360 ha) ...
100%

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Rough Fire". www.fire.ca.gov. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire). Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "2015 Rough Fire Vignettes and Videos - Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Archived from the original on November 28, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Rough Fire". InciWeb. Archived from the original on September 16, 2015. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d e Grossi, Mark (September 19, 2015). "Next drought nightmare: The fire that wouldn't die". The Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  5. ^ Rocha, Veronica (September 10, 2015). "Hundreds evacuate Kings Canyon National Park as massive fire swells". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 18, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  6. ^ Appleton, Rory (August 19, 2015). "Thousands forced out as Rough fire surges to 31,000 acres". The Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on October 8, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Clugston, Gina (August 6, 2015). "Rough Fire Burns In Nearly Inaccessible Terrain Near Kings River". Sierra News Online. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
  8. ^ Moore, Joe; Romero, Ezra David (September 29, 2015). "Life On Top Of Buck Rock, Watching The Rough Fire Rage". KVPR (Podcast). NPR. Event occurs at 2:50. Archived from the original on February 12, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Vignettes of the 2015 Rough Fire" (PDF). www.nps.gov. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks . Archived (PDF) from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  10. ^ Cowan, Jill; Stevens, Matt (August 6, 2021). "How do wildfires get their names?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 17, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
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