Mad River

Summary

• Fire hazard severity zones

  Share of the land in each CAL FIRE hazard class

  Map
  1. Very High 9,805 acres · State Responsibility Area 44%
  2. High 634 acres · State Responsibility Area 3%
  3. Not mapped by CAL FIRE 12,080 acres · Mostly federal land 54%

  22,519 acres of land in all, 10,439 of it in the State Responsibility Area. State zones are the ones the State Fire Marshal designated, in effect since April 1, 2024. Local zones are CAL FIRE's 2025 recommendation, which each city or county adopts by ordinance and can make stricter. How to read fire zones

• Fire history

  The 10 largest of 34 fires that burned here

  Map
  1. 2015 Gobbler Fire 8,305 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,201 acres here
  2. 2015 Pickett Fire 11,013 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 654 acres here
  3. 1974 Unnamed fire Cause: Arson 556 acres here
  4. 2020 August Complex 1,032,700 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 428 acres here
  5. 1971 Unnamed fire Cause: Smoking 242 acres here
  6. 1982 Unnamed fire 239 acres in total · Cause: Arson 236 acres here
  7. 1989 South Fork Fire 182 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 162 acres here
  8. 2017 Rivers Fire Cause: Debris burning 148 acres here
  9. 1982 Dozen Plus Fire 139 acres here
  10. 2015 Buck Fire 1,420 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 127 acres here

  And 24 smaller fires. The most recent was the 2020 August Complex, which burned 428 acres here. In all, 3,875 acres of Mad River have burned. Acres are the land each fire burned here, and fires that crossed less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history