California wildfires timeline
In this Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017 photo released by Santa Barbara County Fire Department firefighters knock down flames as they advance on homes atop Shepherd Mesa Road in Carpinteria, Calif. A flare-up on the western edge of Southern California’s largest and most destructive wildfire sent residents fleeing Sunday, as wind-fanned flames churned through canyons and down hillsides toward coastal towns. Crews with help from water-dropping aircraft saved several homes as unpredictable gusts sent the blaze churning deeper into foothill areas northwest of Los Angeles that haven’t burned in decades. New evacuations were ordered in Carpinteria, a seaside city in Santa Barbara County that has been under fire threat for days. (Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP)
If there is one thing that’s certain, it’s that 2017 was the year of wildfires in the state of California. The 2017 wildfire season has been the the biggest and most destructive season on record with a total of 9,133 fires that burned over 1.3 million acres of the Golden State. The cause of these wildfires are still being investigated, but it is believed that it is due to poor rainfall, dry conditions from the drought, and the strong El Diablo and Santa Ana winds. These wildfires have resulted in the fatalities of one firefighter, over 40 civilians and the evacuation of approximately 230,000 people. It has been predicted by the AccuWeather that the total economic toll of the 2017 california wildfire season will reach $180 billion dollars. Here is a timeline of some the biggest wildfires of the year:
- Elm fire- Fresno county
- Start-containment date: May 18, 2017- May 21, 2017
- 10, 345 acres
- Salmon August Complex fire- siskiyou county
- Start-containment date: June 25, 2017- Dec. 8 2017
- 65,888 acres
- Alamo fire- San Luis Obispo County
- Start-containment date: july 6, 2017- july 19, 2017
- 28,687 acres
- 1 home destroyed & 1 home damaged.
- Detwiler fire- mariposa county
- Start-containment date: july 16, 2017- august 24, 2017
- 81,826 acres
- 131 homes & structures destroyed/ damaged
- Eclipse Complex fire- siskiyou county
- Start-containment date: Aug. 15, 2017- Nov, 29, 2017
- 78,698 acres
- Lion fire-Tulare County
- Start-containment date: Sept. 24, 2017-Dec. 2, 2017
- 18,900 acres
- Tubbs fire- Napa/Sonoma County
- Start-containment date: Oct.8, 2017-Oct.31, 2017
- 36,807 acres
- 22 fatalities, 1 injured and 5,643 structures destroyed
- Nuns fire- Sonoma County
- Start-containment date: Oct. 8, 2017- Oct. 30, 2017
- 56,556 acres.
- 3 fatalities, 1,200 structures destroyed.
- Thomas fire- Ventura County.
- Start-containment date: Dec. 4, 2017- Jan. 12, 2018
- 281,893 acres.
- 1,063 structures destroyed,280 structures damaged, 2 firefighter & 1 civilian killed.
- Creek fire- Los Angeles County.
- Start-containment date: Dec. 5, 2017-Jan. 9, 2018.
- 15,619 acres.
- 123 buildings destroyed, 81 buildings damaged and 3 firefighters injured.
