NEVADA CITY, Calif. September 11, 2011 - A massive lightning storm continued yesterday and throughout the night to hit the Sierra and especially Southern California.
According to the lightning map, 15,536 downstrikes were recorded over the 24-hour period.
The National Forests in California received 2,552 downstrikes along the Sierra Nevada, from the Lassen National Forest down to the extreme south and the Cleveland National Forest.
Locally, the Tahoe National Forest was hit with 156 downstrikes:
- American River District: 52 strikes
- Sierraville District: 30 strikes
- Truckee District: 46 strikes
- Yuba River District: 28 strikes
Several small fires ignited yesterday, all are fully staffed and the majority is contained. Aerial reconnaissance will fly throughout the day to detect any new possible starts.
CAL FIRE reports this morning that last night there were hundreds of additional lightning strikes throughout California. In northern California there were 4 confirmed fires sparked over night in CAL FIRE's jurisdiction. All are now 100% contained at less than 6 acres.
Yesterday's 10,123 downstrikes ignited several new large fires, mostly in Kern County and on the Los Padres National Forest.
Real-time updates on all major incidents are posted on our Fire News incident page.
According to the Predictive Services, isolated thunderstorms will develop over the Sierra today as an upper level low drifts over southern California.
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