Donnell Fire

Donnell Fire
Date(s)
  • August 1, 2018 (2018-08-01) –
  • November 28, 2018 (2018-11-28)
LocationCalifornia, United States
Coordinates38°21′N 119°56′W / 38.350°N 119.933°W / 38.350; -119.933
Statistics[1]
Burned area36,450 acres (148 km2)[1]
Impacts
DeathsNone reported
Non-fatal injuries9
Structures destroyed135
Damage>$30.3 million (2018 USD)[2]
Ignition
CauseUnattended Illegal Campfire
Map
Donnell Fire is located in California
Donnell Fire
Location of fire in California
Map showing burned areas (orange), containment lines (black), and fire closure area (bounded by purple line) on August 14, 2018. The Dardanelle Resort is on Highway 108 in just south of the center of the image; the Bennet Juniper is southeast a few miles, near the fire front.
Map showing daily progression of fire August 2-29, 2018.

The Donnell Fire was a wildfire that started on August 1, 2018 due to an unattended illegal campfire,[3] near Donnell Reservoir, burning around California State Route 108 in Tuolumne County, California and in the Stanislaus National Forest.[4][5][6] It spread rapidly, and the Forest Service closed a California state highway, many forest service roads, campgrounds, wilderness areas, access to privately-owned inholdings, and the Pacific Crest Trail.[7] The fire burned 36,450 acres (147.5 km2), and destroyed 54 major structures and 81 minor structures, before the fire burned out on October 1. There were nine injuries caused by the fire, but no deaths.[1]

Among the destroyed buildings were those of the historic Dardanelle Resort[8][9] and the 1933 Dardanelle Bridge[10][11] a unique bridge listed on the Historic American Engineering Record.[12] Both were at Dardanelle, an unincorporated community on California State Route 108, the highway to Sonora Pass.

The ancient Bennett Juniper was threatened by the fire, which came within half a mile,[13][14][15] but the fire front stabilized after sustained ground and air attacks, and by the evening of August 14, it was no longer advancing toward the tree.[16]

On October 1, 2018, InciWeb reported minimal fire activity.[1] The fire was declared 100% contained on November 28, 2018.[17]

  1. ^ a b c d "Donnell Fire: Incident information". InciWeb. October 1, 2018. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  2. ^ "2018 National Large Incident Year-to-Date Report" (PDF). CAL FIRE. August 28, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2018.
  3. ^ "Unattended campfire escaped and ignited August 2018 Donnell Fire, Forest Service says". 4 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Inversion layer holds Donnell fire growth. Camp Jack Hazard 'surviving'". modbee. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  5. ^ "Update: Acreage Jump In Donnell Fire, Evacuation Advisories Remain In Place". www.mymotherlode.com. 2018-08-08. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  6. ^ "Forest Service Wildland Fire Smoke/Air Quality Outlook of the Yosemite Area for Monday, August 6 - Includes Mariposa, Oakhurst and Yosemite". goldrushcam.com. 2018-08-06. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  7. ^ Jason Kuiken, Forest Supervisor, Stanislaus National Forest, Forest Order No. FTF-16-2018-12 Archived 2018-09-03 at the Wayback Machine (August 30, 2018). U. S. Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture. The map attached as page 3 outlines the closure area and shows the closed areas, trails, and roads.
  8. ^ "'We're devastated.' Much of historic Dardanelle Resort destroyed by Donnell Fire". modbee. 2018-08-06. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  9. ^ "Historic California resort burns in raging Donnell Fire north of Yosemite". SFGate. 2018-08-06. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  10. ^ Guy McCarthy, "Donnell Fire blows up, crosses Highway 108, destroys Dardanelle Resort" Archived 2018-08-30 at the Wayback Machine The Union Democrat, August 6, 2018.
  11. ^ Guy McCarthy photograph, "The historic Dardanelles Bridge burned and fell into the Middle Fork Stanislaus River earlier this week", The Union Democrat, August 7, 2018.
  12. ^ Photographs of bridge, Historic American Engineering Record, Creator, F Manhart, California Division Of Highways, Palm Iron Works, Union Lumber Company, M A Jenkins, and J W Hoopes. Middle Fork Stanislaus River Bridge, Spans Middle Fork Stanislaus River at State Highway 108, Dardanelle, Tuolumne County, CA. California Dardanelle Tuolumne County, 1968. Documentation Compiled After.
  13. ^ Susan Steade, "California fire map: 2,000-year-old Bennett Juniper threatened", The Mercury News, August 13, 2018.
  14. ^ "Donnell Firefighters At Bennett Juniper". MyMotherLode.com. 2018-01-10. Retrieved 2018-08-10.
  15. ^ Amy Graff, "Treasured 2,000-year-old tree threatened by California wildfire", SFGate, August 13, 2018.
  16. ^ Donnell Fire: Map showing containment lines at 2204 hours on August 14, 2018 Archived 2018-08-16 at the Wayback Machine, Central Coast Incident Management Team, US Forest Service.
  17. ^ McCarthy, Guy, "Forest Service declares destructive Donnell Fire 100 percent contained" Archived 2018-12-19 at the Wayback Machine, The Union-Democrat, November 29, 2018