2017 Incident Archive
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483,116Total Emergency Responses
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9,270Wildfires
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1,599,640Acres Burned
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47Confirmed Loss of Life
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10,868Structures Destroyed
Layers
Incident | Counties | Started | Acres | Containment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Thomas Fire | Santa Barbara, Ventura | 12/04/2017 | 281,893 |
100%
|
Chetco Fire | 7/12/2017 | 191,125 |
100%
|
|
Long Valley Fire | Lassen | 7/11/2017 | 83,733 |
100%
|
Modoc July Complex | Modoc | 7/24/2017 | 83,120 |
100%
|
Detwiler Fire | Mariposa | 7/16/2017 | 81,826 |
100%
|
Eclipse Complex | Siskiyou | 8/15/2017 | 78,698 |
100%
|
Atlas Fire (Southern LNU Complex) | Napa, Solano | 10/09/2017 | 51,624 |
100%
|
Garza Fire | Kings | 7/09/2017 | 48,660 |
100%
|
Nuns / Adobe / Norrbom/ Pressley / Partrick Fires / Oakmont (Central LNU Complex) | Napa, Sonoma | 10/09/2017 | 44,573 |
100%
|
Miller Complex | Siskiyou | 8/14/2017 | 39,715 |
100%
|
Tubbs Fire (Central LNU Complex) | Napa, Sonoma | 10/08/2017 | 36,807 |
100%
|
Pier Fire | Tulare | 8/29/2017 | 36,556 |
100%
|
Redwood Valley Fire (Mendocino Lake Complex) | Mendocino | 10/08/2017 | 36,523 |
100%
|
Alamo Fire | San Luis Obispo | 7/06/2017 | 28,687 |
100%
|
Orleans Complex | Siskiyou | 7/26/2017 | 27,276 |
100%
|
Helena - Fork Fire | Trinity | 8/30/2017 | 21,846 |
100%
|
Lion Fire | Tulare | 9/27/2017 | 18,900 |
100%
|
R-4 Fire | Lassen | 8/30/2017 | 18,618 |
100%
|
Whittier Fire | Santa Barbara | 7/08/2017 | 18,430 |
100%
|
Pocket Fire (Central LNU Complex) | Sonoma | 10/09/2017 | 17,357 |
100%
|
2017 Fire Year
In terms of property damage, 2017 was the most destructive wildfire year on record in California at the time. Throughout 2017, the fires destroyed or damaged more than 10,000 structures in the state (destroyed 9,470, damaged 810), a higher tally than the previous nine years combined. In total 9,133 fires burned 1,248,606 acres. In December 2017, strong Santa Ana winds triggered a new round of wildfires, including the massive Thomas Fire in Ventura County. At the time, the Thomas Fire was California's largest modern wildfire, which has since been surpassed by the Mendocino Complex's Ranch Fire in 2018. The December 2017 fires forced over 230,000 people to evacuate. 2017 will be remembered as a year of extremes. It was the third-warmest year on record for the United States, and it was the second-hottest in California, bringing to the surface the question of long-term climate change and its contribution to the 2017 California fires. The hotter temperatures dry out vegetation, making them easier to burn, predisposing vulnerable regions like California to more wildfires in the coming decades as temperatures continue to rise and rainfall continues to decline.
Pictured: The Thomas Fire which raged in Ventura County in December of 2017.