Thunderstorm Ignites Brock Fire Near Shasta Lake
Thunderstorms moving across the Shasta-Trinity National Forest over the past weekend ignited several small wildfires. Three of these were discovered and contained by firefighters before they grew larger than 0.1 acres. However, one discovered today, the Brock Fire, was reported at 1:40 p.m. in a rugged and remote area on the east end of Shasta Lake near Brock Mountain northeast of Jones Valley. The Brock Fire has grown to seven acres in size and several helicopters, air tankers and crews are working to contain it. No structures are threatened at this time.
A chance for more thunderstorms is in the forecast for next weekend. Fire managers closely monitor these storms and aerial reconnaissance flights will often be used to determine if lightning fires have sparked and fire managers will discuss their potential growth activity to develop appropriate response activity.
The Shasta-Trinity National Forest is working in close coordination with partner agencies to coordinate firefighting resources in support of aggressive initial attack. The Forest is prioritizing the use of local suppression resources with the predominant strategy being rapid containment of wildfires.
As a reminder, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest has enacted fire restrictions to protect the health and safety of employees and communities until further notice. Outside of developed campgrounds and certain permitted facilities and areas, igniting, building, maintaining or using a fire on national forests in California will be prohibited. Forest Service officials are taking this necessary step to ensure that firefighters are available to safely respond and manage incidents. 95 percent of all wildfires in California are human caused. More information on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest fire restriction order #14-20-04 is available at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/stnf/forestorders.