MAGALIA, Calif. — Firefighters on the Plumas National Forest Feather River Ranger District plan to start prescribed burning operations today, Wednesday, May 7, northeast of Paradise Lake and south of Skyway and Hupp Coutolenc Road near Magalia, conditions permitting.
Approximately 40 acres of pile burning and underburning is planned in the area near Green Ridge Place and Brezo Way. An additional 10 acres are planned for the same treatment on National Forest System lands directly across the lake, east of Skyway. Ignitions are expected to start around 10 a.m. and may continue through Thursday.
In addition to the Plumas National Forest, firefighters from the Lake Tahoe Basin Management unit, Mendocino, Shasta-Trinity, Six Rivers and Tahoe National Forests, Bureau of Land Management Redding Field Office, CAL FIRE Butte County Fire Department and Firestorm Wildland Fire Suppression, Inc., will be working on the prescribed burning operations for the next several days.
Butte County Fire Safe Council’s work on fuel reduction and preparing the area for pile burning and prescribed burning funded by a USDA Forest Service grant is making the operations possible.
Smoke is expected to be visible from Magalia, Paradise, Chico and the Sacramento Valley, but is not expected to have significant long-term impacts to nearby communities.
Short duration, minor smoke impacts are expected in Paradise Lake and nearby neighborhoods in Magalia, as well as Skyway, Hupp Coutolenc Road and along neighboring forest roads. Visibility on roads in the project area may be reduced, especially early in the morning and late evening as smoke settles.
Firefighters will make efforts to reduce smoke impacts to nearby communities. This includes planning to stop ignitions earlier in the day and monitoring weather conditions.
Area residents and visitors sensitive to smoke may want to be prepared for potential smoke impacts and take measures to reduce exposure.
There will be increased firefighting equipment traffic in the area. Drivers should watch for fire equipment exiting and entering roadways and possible slow traffic in the area for the next several days.
If weather conditions become unfavorable, including increased or gusty winds in the area, burning will stop until conditions improve. Firefighters will be monitoring conditions throughout the entire operation.
The area being treated was threatened by the 2018 Camp Fire. The pile burning and underburning occurring is part of critical fuel reduction work to protect area communities and residents, reducing the risk of wildfire.
“This will be our fourth prescribed burning operation near Magalia since early April,” said Feather River District Fire Management Officer James Lico. “So far we have had excellent conditions for prescribed burning, which we expect to continue this week, and the strong community support throughout these operations is greatly appreciated.”
The planned prescribed burning at Paradise Lake is also in the wildland-urban interface near a popular recreation area, homes and neighborhoods.
“The prescribed burning in this area is the continuation of critical fuel reduction to help protect neighborhoods, communities, recreation facilities and Paradise Lake from the risk of severe wildfire,” Lico said. “We appreciate everyone’s patience, understanding and cooperation while we conduct these prescribed burning operations with a focus on public and firefighter safety.”
Firefighters are continuing to monitor conditions for opportunities for additional treatment in the area this spring.
For more information on the Plumas National Forest, visit www.fs.usda.gov/plumas or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/USFSPlumas.