WILLOWS, Calif. November 30, 2020 – The Mendocino, Shasta-Trinity and Six Rivers national forests have been working closely together throughout all phases of the August Complex fires for three months. The three Forests have coordinated suppression actions, suppression-repair activities, burned area emergency response (BAER) assessments and implementation. The fires within the August Complex ignited on August 16 and 17, 2020, burning 1,032,648 acres before being contained on November 11, 2020. With the recent full containment of the August Complex, the forests have brought together a multi-disciplinary post-fire rapid assessment team (Team) to identify the longer-term restoration and rehabilitation needs across the burned area.
This Team is working across boundaries to maximize efficiency and consists of specialists from heritage, fuels, geology, wildlife, timber, public affairs, planning and other resources. Team members have been tasked with identifying potential hazards to public safety and infrastructure, as well as identifying areas that need other restoration, rehabilitation, or long-term maintenance treatments. As part of this effort, the team will be reaching out to partners and communities to get their thoughts on post-fire recovery.
This rapid assessment is a first step in identifying the hazard reduction and restoration activities the Forests will pursue within the August Complex. Any projects that are selected to move forward will go through additional field assessment and the necessary environmental compliance prior to implementation. The team has already started its work on the rapid assessment.