Forest Services names errant campfire as cause of Root Fire

Yesterday the U.S. Forest Service shared the cause of the Root Fire, which has engulfed parts of Siskiyou and Shasta Counties since it began on September 1. According to a public media release on September 5, “the Root Fire, located west of Castella and Dunsmuir – was caused by an escaped campfire.” It’s one of three manmade fires forest service firefighters have recently responded to, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest said. 

The Root Fire has prompted the Forest Service to implement a fire restriction order across most of the Shasta-Trinity forest, effective September 4 through December 31, 2025, following similar restrictions imposed earlier this summer, on August 13.

The most recent order expressly prohibits building, maintaining, attending or using a fire, campfire, or stove fire except small designated areas, and imposes certain restrictions on where community members can smoke, operate generators or drive vehicles that have combustion engines (found in most cars) off National Forest System roads and trails. 

Shasta Trinity’s Fire Management Officer Kevin Osborne urged the public to “help us by following fire restrictions and only having campfires in designated areas with a valid campfire permit.” The Forest Service also indicated that manmade fires such as the Root Fire take valuable firefighting resources away from the multiple lightning-caused fires across Northern California.

As of 3:34 p.m. on September 5, the Root Fire spans 759 acres, burning through forest land directly west of Castle Crags in Shasta County. Calfire is reporting that it has now been 50% contained. 

One area of Shasta, zone CST-1070B, was evacuated the day the fire began, and three others in Siskiyou County remain under a warning, meaning that there is a potential threat to life and/or property.

There are currently 457 personnel aiding in the effort to fight the Root Fire, and the Georgia Forestry Commission Type 3 Incident Management Team arrived on the scene to help on September 4. That day, the forest service noted, there was no increase in the blaze.

Firefighters are working both day and night shifts with various water sources to strengthen containment lines around the perimeter of the fire.