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Here is the California side of the fires in the SW Oregon and NW California area from the Eureka Standard:

Article Last Updated:
Thursday, August 01, 2002 -

Gasquet area fires grow, residents watch and wait
By John Driscoll The Times-Standard

GASQUET -- Residents of Gasquet and Hiouchi are holding tight as a giant border-straddling fire rages unchecked only miles from the tiny towns northeast of Crescent City.

The Sour Biscuit Fire, as it is now officially called, has grown since it jumped the Oregon border into California over the weekend. On the California side of the border the fire has sprung from 16,000 acres Tuesday to about 20,000 acres, and the fire as a whole has swelled to 33,000 acres.

"We're assessing the fire today and we're saying that there's not a current, immediate threat to the community of Gasquet," said Northern Rockies Incident Management Team spokeswoman Terry Knupp. The team is made up of a slew of agencies called in to handle coordination of large contingents of firefighters.

Knupp said she believes the fire is growing mostly in the northeast portion of the blaze, in an area called Holiday Mine, around High Dome. Nine hand crews, 96 personnel and two helicopters are fighting that fire.

The Sour Biscuit Fire has also come within about a half-mile of Simpson Timber Co. land. The company has carved a fire line on the border of its land to protect timber.

Another fire burning along U.S. Highway 199 has grown to 700 acres and has kept the highway -- which is acting as a fire line -- closed. The smaller Shelly Fire is currently getting more attention, with 41 engines, 17 hand crews, four bulldozers and five helicopters involved for a total of 879 people assigned to the fire.

The fire and another to the north called the Florence Fire that doubled in size to 145,000 acres Tuesday have sent ash and smoke far south into Humboldt County, giving the sunrise over the coastal hills around Humboldt Bay an orange pall. Another fire outside of Happy Camp has kept communities along the Klamath and Trinity rivers socked in by smoke.

The Sour Biscuit and Shelly fires have drawn about 1,000 firefighters and organizers to a camp at the Del Norte County High School set up over the past few days. As many as 1,000 more personnel may be arriving soon.

Gasquet and Hiouchi residents are still on 24-hour evacuation alert and were expected to be thoroughly apprised of their situation at a public meeting Wednesday night.

"We're kind of looking forward to that meeting tonight," said Karey Dean, whose husband is pastor of the Gasquet Bible Church on Gasquet Flat Road.

Dean said information has been scarce to date. She said the smoke may have pushed some people to leave the area for relief, but that no one has been forced to leave their homes. Little else has changed, she said, aside from churchgoers perhaps praying more fervently.

A firefighter reached at Gasquet's Wagonwheel Motel and Cafe, closed due to the fire, said the town woke up to an east wind thick with smoke. He said local fire teams have made contact with everyone in Gasquet and have given advice on how to protect their homes. They have also marked water sources in the area, like the 2,100-gallon portable tank he was setting up at the motel.

"Most everyone has their thoughts in order if and when they get the order (to evacuate)," said the firefighter, who requested anonymity.

The smoke and ash that has invaded Humboldt County is likely to stick around for some time, said Leonard Herr of the North Coast Unified Air Quality Management District. Herr said the smoke is being trapped in a recirculating air cell over northwestern California.

Satellite photos show streams of smoke from the California-Oregon fires moving to the southwest, into Humboldt County.

"It's not looking real horrible but it's not looking real good," Herr said. "I don't see much of a change anytime soon."

Herr said that people with respiratory problems should use common sense and stay indoors and avoid unnecessary exercise.

The Stanza Fire 10 miles outside of Happy Camp has burned 2,665 acres and is now 60 percent contained. More than 900 people are working to control that fire, sometimes using backfires to burn out fuels ahead of the approaching fire. No structures were threatened by the remote fire as of Wednesday evening.