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+--- Thread: The Dixie Fire is now the largest single wildfire in California history (/thread-10777.html)
The Dixie Fire is now the largest single wildfire in California history - C C - Aug 11, 2021
https://gizmodo.com/the-dixie-fire-is-now-the-largest-single-wildfire-in-ca-1847459144
INTRO: Many parts of the world are on fire right now, but California is in a league of its own. The Dixie Fire, which is currently roaring through Northern California, has burned through 487,764 acres as of Tuesday morning, making it the second-largest overall fire in state history and the largest single fire on record in California.
Last year’s massive August Complex Fire burned through a jaw-dropping 1,032,648 acres and occupies the top spot on the state’s largest fires list. However, as its name implies, that fire was what’s known as a “complex fire”—a superfire of sorts that formed after several smaller fires met up with each other. But in terms of single fires, the Dixie Fire has now easily blown past the previous record-holder, last fall’s Creek Fire, which destroyed 379,895 acres. The Dixie Fire has also now overtaken other complex fires in the state’s Top 20 largest fires list, including 2018’s Mendocino Complex Fire, which burned 459,123 acres, and last August’s SCU Complex Fire, which burned 396,624 acres.
The Dixie Fire, which began in mid-July, is actively burning through four counties and is currently only 25% contained as of Tuesday morning. This marks a significant expanse of the fire since last week, when it was 35% contained on Thursday. Officials last week said that they expected the fire to be contained by August 20, but pushed that prediction back 10 days on Monday. As of Tuesday, officials have made that date much more open-ended, changing the projected containment date to “to be determined.”
As of Tuesday, the fire has destroyed nearly 900 homes and buildings, as almost 6,000 firefighters work against the blaze. More than 12,000 people in eight different counties are now under evacuation orders as the fire grows larger. Last week, the fire destroyed the historic town of Greenville, burning nearly the entire downtown to ash and prompting panicked evacuation orders from local officials... (MORE)