Sheering Fire In Stanislaus National Forest Holding At 370 Acres

Forest Service Image

Tuolumne County, CA — A lighting-caused fire in the Stanislaus National Forest, the Sheering Fire, has remained the same size over the past 24 hours.

The 370-acre fire was started on June 24 during an unusual weather pattern (lightning event) that passed through the region, and Forest Service officials started incorporating aircraft to help battle the blaze on July 2nd. Since then, the Stanislaus National Forest Helitak crew has dropped over 17,000 gallons of water on the fire. 60 firefighters are assigned.

It is burning within the 2013 Rim Fire footprint in the Clavey River drainage.

Detailing recent activity, Incident Commander Shaun Craig says, “The fire is primarily flanking into Lost Creek. There are small short-lived uphill runs occurring from the roll out into the drainages.”

The Forest Service adds that single and group tree torching has been observed in areas outside of dense snag patches where the canopy is still intact due to decadent shrub growth. Numerous snags in the areas have fallen and drastically increased the fuel loading though it does not have much impact on the rate of spread, according to the Forest Service.