Jones Fire (1999)
{{Short description|1999 wildfire in Northern California}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2023}}
{{Infobox wildfire
| title =Jones Fire
| image =1999 Jones Fire perimeter 1.png
| image_size =
| alt =Refer to caption
| caption =The final perimeter of the Jones Fire
| location ={{Unbulleted list|Shasta County,|Northern California,|United States}}
| coordinates ={{coord|40|41|40|N|122|14|40|W|display=inline,title}}
| reference =
| cost =
| date ={{Unbulleted list|{{Start date|16|10}} – |{{End date|1999|10|19}}|({{duration in days|1999|10|16|1999|10|19}} days)}}
| area ={{convert|26200|acre|ha sqmi km2|0}}
| cause =Undetermined
| landuse =
| buildings =954 (37 damaged)
| injuries =5
| fatalities =1
| missing =
| evacuated = ~2,500
| image_map =
| image_map_alt =
| image_map_caption =
| pushpin_map =USA California Northern
| pushpin_map_alt =
| pushpin_map_caption =
}}{{About|the 1999 Jones Fire in California|the 2017 Jones Fire in Oregon|Jones Fire}}
The 1999 Jones Fire was a destructive wildfire in the U.S. state of California's Shasta County. The fire ignited on October 16, and was contained on October 19, 1999.{{Cite web |date=February 10, 2000 |title=1999 Large Fires, 300 Acres And Greater |url=http://www.fire.ca.gov/FireEmergencyResponse/HistoricalStatistics/PDF/lf_1999.PDF |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010909215616/http://www.fire.ca.gov/FireEmergencyResponse/HistoricalStatistics/PDF/lf_1999.PDF |archive-date=September 9, 2001 |website=California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection}} It burned {{Convert|26200|acre|ha}}, destroyed 954 structures, and resulted in one fatality,{{Cite web |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Top 20 Most Destructive California Wildfires |url=https://www.fire.ca.gov/media/t1rdhizr/top20_destruction.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928163251/https://www.fire.ca.gov/media/t1rdhizr/top20_destruction.pdf |archive-date=September 28, 2022 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection}} becoming the then-second most destructive wildfire ever recorded in California, behind only the Oakland firestorm of 1991.{{Cite web |date=2001 |title=20 Largest California Wildland Fires (By Structures Lost) |url=http://www.fire.ca.gov/FireEmergencyResponse/HistoricalStatistics/20largefiresstructures.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011031164438/http://www.fire.ca.gov/FireEmergencyResponse/HistoricalStatistics/20largefiresstructures.asp |archive-date=October 31, 2001 |access-date=October 10, 2022 |website=California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection}} {{As of|2023}} it remains one of the 20 most destructive wildfires in the history of the state. The cause of the fire was never determined.
Background
The Northern California Geographical Coordination Center identifies the weather pattern that fueled the Jones Fire as a typical critical fire weather setup in Northern California, noting that "Post-frontal conditions occur when high pressure following the passage of a cold front causes strong winds from the north and northeast."{{Cite web |date=July 7, 2008 |title=Northern California Fire Behavior Assessment |url=https://battle-creek.net/docs/fire/ONC_Support_Fire_Behavior_Assess_07_06_20084.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170705111008/https://battle-creek.net/docs/fire/ONC_Support_Fire_Behavior_Assess_07_06_20084.pdf |archive-date=July 5, 2017 |access-date= |website=Northern California Geographic Coordination Center |page=4}}
Progression
The fire began well before dawn on October 16 at a campsite on Clikapudi Trail between Bear Mountain and Backbone Ridge, east of Jones Valley, close to Shasta Lake.{{Cite news |last=Breitler |first=Alex |date=October 20, 1999 |title=Blaze toll on homes hits 128 |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115728671/blaze-toll-on-homes-hits-128-page-a-1/ A1], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115728810/blaze-toll-on-homes-hits-128-page-a7/ A7] |work=Redding Record Searchlight |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115728810/blaze-toll-on-homes-hits-128-page-a7/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103212000/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115728810/blaze-toll-on-homes-hits-128-page-a7/ |url-status=live }} Investigators said it was human-caused and appeared to be accidental.{{Cite news |last=Bailey |first=Eric |last2=McDermott |first2=Terry |date=October 18, 1999 |title=2,500 Flee, 100 Homes Burn in N. California |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-oct-18-mn-23592-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221216205649/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-oct-18-mn-23592-story.html |archive-date=December 16, 2022}} A campfire was ruled out, and alcohol bottles, bullet shells, and cigarette butts were all found at the site.
The Shasta-Trinity Ranger Unit Emergency Command Center received the first report about a vegetation fire in the Jones Valley Resort area at approximately 3:49 a.m. By 4:17 a.m., a half-hour later, the fire had already burned an area of more than {{Convert|150|acre|ha}}, and was spreading rapidly to the south with multiple spot fires ahead of the main fire front. At this point the command center was already placing mutual aid requests for firefighters locally and regionally to respond and help protect structures in the fire's path.
The fire, driven by hot, dry, winds of {{Convert|25|mph|km/h}}, burned south in a swath {{Convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} wide and {{Convert|20|mi|km}} long.
The fire was estimated to be 50 percent contained by the evening of October 17, and by October 19 it was 100 percent contained.
Effects
The Jones fire destroyed 954 structures, of which at least 128 were homes and the remainder either commercial structures or outbuildings.{{Cite web |date=October 21, 1999 |title=Forest Fires in the United States |url=https://gfmc.online/current/archive/us/1999/10/us_211099.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221216205650/https://gfmc.online/current/archive/us/1999/10/us_211099.htm |archive-date=December 16, 2022 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=Global Fire Monitoring Center}} A further 37 structures were damaged. The fire damaged electrical infrastructure in the area, leaving many without power until October 19 and necessitating the replacement of 160 power poles.
The fire led to one fatality when a volunteer firefighter from Junction City was struck by a firetruck along Highway 299 while responding to the incident on October 16. Then-Governor of California Gray Davis offered a statement of condolences.{{Cite news |last=Coleman |first=Jennifer |date=October 17, 1999 |title=Firefighter killed: Blaze near Redding destroys more than 50 homes |page=C-9 |work=Santa Cruz Sentinel |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115744904/firefighter-killed-blaze-near-redding-d/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=November 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102024252/https://www.newspapers.com/article/santa-cruz-sentinel-firefighter-killed/115744904/ |url-status=live }} A Cal Fire investigation found that the command structure and communication issues were contributing factors in the incident.{{Cite web |title=Informational Summary Report: Firefighter Fatality, Jones Incident |url=https://www.wildfirelessons.net/orphans/viewincident?DocumentKey=a50190c6-520b-4417-9583-fb0d825cfed1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103175319/https://higherlogicdownload.s3-external-1.amazonaws.com/WILDFIRELESSONS/Jones_Fire_Eng_Firefighter_Fatality_1999.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAVRDO7IEREB57R7MT&Expires=1672771999&Signature=Scq2Pv7xzAWO%2FFfFxksW5qBvjAo%3D |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection}} There were at least five injuries; four belonged to firefighters and one to a Bella Vista woman who was injured while helping her family evacuate, suffering third-degree burns.{{Cite news |last=Schultz |first=Jim |date=November 26, 1999 |title=Fire victim has hard holiday |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115745064/fire-victim-has-hard-holiday-page-b-1/ B-1], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115745162/fire-victim-has-hard-holiday-page-b-2/ B-2] |work=Redding Record Searchlight |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115745162/fire-victim-has-hard-holiday-page-b-2/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104010556/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115745162/fire-victim-has-hard-holiday-page-b-2/ |url-status=live }}
See also
- Glossary of wildfire terms
- 1999 Pendola Fire
- 2021 Fawn Fire