California Wildfire Update: Expected Storms Put Fire Crews on ‘High Alert’

California’s Park Fire, now the fourth largest wildfire in the state’s history, is set to face high temperatures and thunderstorms this weekend, threatening recent containment gains and putting firefighters “on high alert,” a local battalion chief told Newsweek.

The Park Fire was ignited on July 24 and has since grown to become the largest wildfire currently burning in California, having scorched nearly 400,000 acres over 620 square miles, according to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE).

Brent Pascua, a CAL FIRE battalion chief, told Newsweek in a phone interview that the department has “changed our approach to the Park Fire specifically because of its size,” explaining that “we have two incident management teams managing the fire, whereas normally, on a big fire, we have just one.”

As of Friday afternoon, the blaze is 24 percent contained, although incoming weather may lower that. Pascua warned that “the problem with these storms is when they come, they bring unpredictability with them, meaning instead of your local factors influencing the fire normally…with the storms, its unpredictable it could push the fire in all directions.”

Pascua said the crews are concerned about both the “erratic winds” and the “potential for lightning starting a new fire.” He noted that crews still work in thunderstorms, but “when lightning starts to happen on the fire, we pull the crews off the hills and back to the engines until the lightning subsides.”

Hundreds of crews are supporting suppression efforts, with 6,375 personnel, 41 helicopters, 542 engines, 180 dozers and 148 water tenders fighting on more than 200-miles of active fire front to suppress the fire that was allegedly sparked by 42-year-old Ronnie Stout II.

Stout was arrested last week for allegedly starting the Park Fire by pushing a burning car into a 60-foot ditch, according to the Butte County District Attorney. He is currently booked in Butte County Jail where he will be held without bail until his arraignment on Monday, the CAL FIRE/Butt County Fire Department said in a press release.

On Friday, the region is expected to reach between 98- and 103-degrees Fahrenheit, which coupled with lower humidity and strong winds, “could lead to extreme fire behavior and cause the fire to grow in multiple directions,” a CAL FIRE update said.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a red flag warning indicating critical fire weather conditions in the area, specifically forecasting “lighting and gusty and erratic winds,” adding that “any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly.”

Pascua said that going into this weekend’s weather, the crews are “preparing for the worst, but hoping for the best.”

The Park Fire is so large it can be seen from space. On July 27, NASA captured several images of it.

Thousand of resident have been evacuated since the fire’s start. As of Friday, the fire has destroyed 542 structures and damaged 50.

The National Interagency Fire Center reports there are 94 large fires being suppressed across the U.S. with over 2.1 million acres having been burned in large fires this year.