“It adds another layer of complexity to firefighting,” said Cal Fire spokesman Scott McLean. According to National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Kurth, who is assigned to the Mosquito fire, the storm over Northern California dropped between ½ inch and an inch of rain on the fire on Sunday. It also brought cooler temperatures and higher humidity — favorable conditions for firefighters, who took advantage of those conditions to extend containment lines to about 39 percent of the fire. Moderate rainfall was expected to continue through Wednesday, with about an inch falling on the fire Monday, with possible isolated thunderstorms producing locally heavy rains that could cause flash flooding and ash and debris slides. Isolated showers are expected on Wednesday, with dry conditions and a warm up on Thursday, with temperatures returning to normal — in the 80s — on Friday. In addition to the potential for landslides and flooding, the rains are creating muddy, slippery and dangerous conditions for the thousands of firefighters working to surround and extinguish the blaze in the steep and rugged terrain. Cal Fire officials said. “All those bulldozer lines and hand lines are going to turn to mud,” McLean said, “and crossing those sewers is going to be difficult.” Fire crews may have to pull back from lines in some areas, he said, but will continue to fight the fire, putting out hot spots and smoldering trees and working to extend containment lines around its perimeter. fire. The eastern edge of the fire continues to pose the biggest challenge for firefighters, McLean said. The Mosquito Fire, burning in the Tahoe and El Dorado National Forests, began on September 7. It raged in its first days, destroying 78 structures and damaging 13 — and forcing thousands of residents in the sparsely populated, heavily forested area to flee their homes. Cal Fire investigators are still trying to determine the cause. Over the weekend, evacuation orders came in for some areas including Georgetown, Cool, Garden Valley, Deer View, Kelsey Greenwood, Bottle Hill, Cannon Creek and Gray Eagle. However, several evacuation orders and warnings remain in effect and evacuation centers are still open in Rocklin, Cameron Park and Placerville. The area is steep, rugged and populated by clusters of houses off rural roads. Once a gold mining center, the area is now a recreation area popular with off-road vehicle users and trail runners. As rains give way to sunshine late in the week, firefighters hope temperatures won’t soar and humidity remains high, McLean said, allowing them to continue making progress in containing the fire, McLean said. “Fire activity has slowed, but firefighters have not,” the US Forest Service said in an update Monday morning. “While the rain presents a different set of challenges to the firefighting effort, crews continue to work, taking advantage of the lull in fire activity to secure the perimeter of the fire and increase containment before warm, dry weather returns,” the agency said . Michael Cabanatuan (he/she) is a staff writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @ctuan
