NORTH FORK — Residents evacuated last Sunday ahead of the Mission Fire are being allowed to return home.
The Madera County Sheriff’s Office has announced that the evacuations will be lifted for residents only at 10 a.m. today.
Resident screening locations have been established at traffic control points.
Entry to non-residents will remain restricted.
For additional information regarding traffic control points and re-entry, residents should contact the Mission Fire Information Line at 844-668-3473.
Evacuees returning home should be aware of large fire equipment moving all along the narrow roads. There is also a lot of traffic moving in and out of the Incident Command Post at the Old Mill Site.
SAFETY MESSAGE- If you see electrical wires on the ground, stay clear and contact PG&E immediately. Trees and poles with deep charring, particularly if still smoking, should be considered hazardous. PG&E is ready to assist and can be contacted at 1-800-743-5000.
The fire is still holding at 1,035 acres and is now 50 percent contained.
Some 180 California National Guard troops have arrived to assist with the fire suppression efforts. They are specially trained as firefighters and are not here as law enforcement.
The number of structures destroyed has been amended to three, with four listed as damaged.
Over 60 spot fires have been identified and lined outside the northwest perimeter over the last few days. All have been lined and contained.
Crews continue to identify and mitigate hazards in and around the community of Cascadel Woods and in the Heights. Power has been restored.
The work done along the southern perimeter of the fire continues to hold. Firefighters are doing mop-up and strengthening those lines.
Crews are already busy repairing the damage done during the active suppression of the fire including removing slash and debris, clearing drainages, re-establishing berms, creating water bars, smoothing dozered areas and scattering lopped vegetation on cleared soil to prevent erosion.
There are currently 1,739 personnel assigned to the incident including 157 engines, 34 hand crews, 20 dozers, 15 water tenders and 9 helicopters.
While good progress has been made on this fire, the tree mortality and conditions on the lines mean there is still potential for the fire to run. Fire officials continue to advise their people not to become complacent, as this incident is far from over.
The fire information line for the public is 844-668-3473.
Agencies cooperating on this fire include Cal Fire, the USFS Sierra National Forest, the Madera County Sheriff’s Office, CHP, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Madera County Fire Department, California Office of Emergency Services, the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians, the American Red Cross, the California National Guard, the Central California Animal Disaster Team and PG&E.
