The Park Fire in Butte County — already the largest blaze in California this year — exploded to more than 164,000 acres Friday morning, its rapid spread prompting more evacuation warnings.
The fire has grown dramatically over two days, with steady winds and high temperatures, and its isolated location makes it difficult to fight. It was listed Friday morning at 164,286 acres and 3 percent contained.
Conditions on the ground will continue to be challenging, forecasters warn.
The National Weather Service has issued a red warning for the northern Sacramento Valley, which includes the area where the fire is burning. Forecasters warned that there could be wind gusts of up to 30 mph pushing the fire north, combined with low humidity through Friday night, which “may cause new fires to start and ongoing wildfires … to grow rapidly and dangerously in size and intensity.”
It was one of many fires raging in California.
In Butte County, firefighters battling the Park Fire remained focused on protecting structures and the public until additional crews arrived.
The Butte County Sheriff’s Office ordered residents in northeast Chico to evacuate, and more than 4,000 people had been evacuated as of Thursday night, according to Megan McMann, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office. Several rural areas in Tehama County also were under evacuation orders.
The fire is spreading north into the Ishi Wilderness and Lassen Foothills, which experts say have not seen fire activity in decades, if not a century.
“Once he got to that area, he had a lot of fuel to burn,” Collins said.
“A lot of us in the fire business have been waiting 25 years for this type of fire to happen,” said Zeke Lunder, a geographer and fire specialist based in Chico. He added that the lack of recent fires has left the area a veritable blaze.
On Thursday afternoon, authorities announced they had arrested a 42-year-old Chico man on suspicion of arson. Prosecutors say the man pushed a burning car into a ravine, sparking a fire that quickly spread.
