Multiple wildfires continue to burn in Fresno County. Power restored at Cat Haven

Joshua Tehee

June 28, 2024 at 4:07 p.m.·2 min read

Several large wildfires continued to burn in the foothills of eastern Fresno County and Sierra National Forest near Pine Flat following a series of lightning stikes on Monday.

As of Friday morning the Fresno Lighting Complex and Basin fires have burned more than 16,300 acres and prompted evacuation orders for several areas, including at Balch Camp and Dalton Mountain.

Evacuation warnings have been triggered for areas closer to Orange Cove and the southern part of Pine Flat Reservoir.

The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office has an interactive map of the evacuation orders available online.

Road closures have been ordered on Highway 180 from Cove Road to Dunlap Road at Cove Road and Hopewell Road as well as on Highway 63 at South Hills Valley Road.

Fresno Lighting Complex Fire

The Fresno Lighting Complex Fire is a combination of at least three fires that started Monday and saw massive growth Thursday. Included in the complex are the Flash/Bolt Fire near Wonder Valley and the Hog and Strike fires. Of those, the Flash/Bolt Fire remains the most active. It has burned 10,375 acres and is 21% contained.

The Fresno County Board of Supervisors planned a special meeting Friday afternoon to call for a state of Local Emergency.

According to an update Friday morning, the increased temperatures and low humidity over the weekend could mean more fire activity.

Basin Fire

The Basin Fire started on Wednesday just south of Balch Camp in the Sierra National Forest. So far, it has burned 5,692 acres and caused evacuations in a large area northeast of Pine Flat Reservoir. That including the The Kirch Flat Campground, which was evacuated on Wednesday.

As of Friday, that fire has zero containment.

Cat Haven under threat

Project Survival’s Cat Haven in Dunlap remains under threat from the fires.

The big cat sanctuary, home to 40 animals including a sick mountain lion named Birdie, has been preparing for evacuations since Tuesday. According to its social media, Cat Haven was one mile from the mandatory evacuation line, though crews had stopped the movement of the fire toward the 100-acre facility off Highway 180.

It was without cell service and lost power for 72 hours.

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Fresno Lighting Complex Fire

Basin Fire

Cat Haven under threat

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