NEVADA CITY, Calif. August 22, 2016 – Lightning activity on Sunday was centered on the Sierra Nevada with 486 recorded downstrikes. Both the east side and the west side received strikes, mostly with some scant precipitation.
Today’s forecast calls for additional lightning activity along the Sierra crest and into the Foothills.
Downstrikes on Sunday were clustered on the Plumas, Eldorado, Humboldt-Toyabe and Inyo National Forests, with Kings Canyon National Park rounding out the preferred strike zones. In the very south of the state, the Cleveland National Forest also experienced a moderate lightning event.
Locally, the Tahoe National Forest only recorded 4 lightning strikes, 3 for Sierraville Ranger District and 1 for Truckee Ranger District.
On Thursday, 37 strikes within the Tahoe – 19 for Sierraville R.D., 4 for American River R.D., 8 for Truckee R.D., and 6 for Yuba River R.D. sparked several small fires, all quickly contained by firefighters.
Aircraft will be up and looking for any new fires. Very dry fuels, energy release component (ERC) values above the 90 percent mark and six major incidents in the state make for very high fire danger.