Pacific Gas & Electric says its equipment may have been the cause of the Dixie Fire. PG&E said in a report to the California Public Utilities Commission that a repairman responding to a circuit outage on July 13th spotted blown fuses in a conductor atop a pole, a tree leaning into the conductor and fire at the base of the tree. The blaze is burning northeast of the Town of Paradise, where the 2018 Camp Fire that was started by PG&E equipment killed 85 people. The Dixie Fire has burned more than 59,984 acres. Containment remains at 15%. The inferno has been creating its own weather, with large Pyrocumulous clouds forming, collapsing and reforming. 810 structures are threatened but none have burned. Many evacuation orders and warnings are in effect, coordinated by the Butte, Plumas and Lassen County Sheriff’s Departments. A number of roads are closed, including a long stretch of Highway 70. More than 2,500 personnel are fighting the fire.
A fire in the Plumas National Forest seems to be winding down. The lighting-sparked Sugar Fire and Dotta Fire make up the Beckwourth Complex, which remains at 105,350 acres, now with 88% containment.
The Salt Fire is in mop-up and patrol stage after burning 12,660 acres. 41 buildings, including at least 27 homes, were destroyed in the Salt Fire. Investigators would still like to find the vehicle with the failing catalytic convertor or other mechanical problem that started the fire on June 30th at 1:30PM in the afternoon.