Update: Fire In The Stanislaus National Forest Stopped
Update at 3:56 pm: The forward progress of the Rush Fire has been stopped. All of the fixed wing aircraft has now been released back to base. Mop-up efforts will continue.
Update at 3:08 pm: Crews continue to make progress battling the 10-acre Rush Fire located in the Groveland Ranger District of the Stanislaus National Forest. It is located on Moore Creek Road near Buck Meadow Road. The latest size estimate is 10 acres. Stanislaus National Forest Spokesperson Ben Cossel confirms that Air Attack has now been released from the incident, but helicopters 511 and 517 are still on scene. Smoke has notably died down within the last hour. Click here to view a webcam pointed at the fire.
Update at 2 p.m.: Updated acreage to 10 acres. Stanislaus National Forest reports the blaze has grown to ten acres in size.
Update at 1:40 p.m.: Air and ground resources continue to work the Rush Fire, a vegetation fire burning in the Coulterville area of Mariposa County. It is located on Moore Creek Road near Buck Meadow Road. Stanislaus National Forest reports the blaze has grown to five acres in size. Spokesperson Ben Cossel updates that the fire is holding on Forest Service Road 1S29, halting progression to the east. Crews are aggressively working to stop the forward progress to the north. He added that the heel of the blaze is holding with the aircraft. Earlier, he noted that the flames are moving at a moderate rate of spread, with a slow rate of spread on the eastern flank. The western flank is butting up against Forest Road 1S15.
The Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office reports, “At this time, there are no evacuations or structures threatened. Please avoid the area to allow emergency crews to continue to work safely and efficiently.”
Update at 12:55 p.m.: Stanislaus National Forest reports through better mapping that the Rush Fire is located on Moore Creek Road near Buck Meadow Road in the Coulterville area of Mariposa County. Spokesperson Ben Cossel updates that the blaze is 2.5 acres. The flames are moving at a moderate rate of spread, with a slow rate of spread on the eastern flank. The western flank is butting up against Forest Road 1S15.
Original post at 12:20 p.m.: Buck Meadows, CA — Air and ground resources are responding to a reported vegetation fire in the Stanislaus National Forest south of Buck Meadows near the Tuolumne and Mariposa County line.
Dubbed the Rush Fire, it is two acres in size, and a large plume of smoke can be seen on the PG&E live cameras in the image box photo. The flames broke out near Buck Meadows Road and Moore Pilot Ridge Road. Forest spokesperson Ben Cossel reports it is on the Groveland Ranger District and was reported by both the Mount Elizabeth and Smith Peak Fire Lookout Stations. He added that the flames are moving at a moderate rate of spread, with spotting 100 feet off the fire. There is no word as to whether any structures are threatened.
An update will be provided as soon as new information comes into the newsroom.
