Thompson Fire rages on, but some residents are returning home

As nearly 2,000 firefighters continued to battle the Thompson Fire near Oroville, in Butte County, on Thursday, there were reports that some of the 28,000 residents forced to evacuate might be returning home.

The fire, the cause of which is still under investigation, had consumed an estimated 3,500 acres by Thursday, according to Cal Fire, the state’s main firefighting agency, with only 7% of the fire currently contained.

Around 12,180 structures are also under threat and four structures have already been destroyed.

But Cal Fire officials were revising evacuation orders and warnings on Thursday, reports said, meaning that some residents were returning to their homes. The Oroville Church of the Nazarene and the Butte County Fairgrounds are now also being used as shelters.

Numerous firefighting air tankers from throughout the state are flying fire suppression missions to the area, according to Cal Fire.

Chris Peterson, public information officer for Cal Fire, said multiple engines, bulldozers and other vehicles are also employed to help fire crews continue to fight the fire.

Oroville’s Fourth of July fireworks celebration was canceled Thursday. And California State Parks estimates that the parks in the area could remain closed until Friday depending on the conditions.

Peterson said the Oroville Dam, the tallest dam in the United States, still has not experienced any damages, however the fire did burn on both sides of the dam.

“The dam is a main infrastructure, so we make sure we put crews in the area. That way we can protect infrastructure, because we don’t want to turn into or a bigger incident,” he said.

He also said Cal Fire was expecting the winds to transition Thursday and for humidity levels to stay low so there is the potential for the fire to flare back up.

“We have crews who are out there working on (hosing) around the whole fire,” Peterson said.

On Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared the Thompson Fire was state of emergency and announced that the state secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help ensure fire crews have more resources to suppress the fire.

“We are using every available tool to tackle this fire and will continue to work closely with our local and federal partners to support impacted communities,” Newsom said. “As we head into some of the most challenging months of wildfire season, the state is better prepared than ever to protect at-risk communities with new tools, technology and resources.”

He also said Cal Fire is expected the winds to transition today and for humidity levels to stay low so there is the potential for the fire to flare back up.

“We have crews who are out there working on (hosing) around the whole fire,” Peterson said.

Peterson also said Cal Fires is currently calculating how many homes have been burnt and the cause of the fire.

“We have (teams) who are going out in the field, and they go out and they walk around every single home near the fire line to ensure … that everything gets documented,” he said.