The Stagecoach fire began 8/3/2020, 9 miles south of Lake Isabella near the town of Havilah. The cause was under investigation.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS HNX wrote it up.
The Stagecoach fire began 8/3/2020, 9 miles south of Lake Isabella near the town of Havilah. The cause was under investigation. The fire grew rapidly thee first 3 days, then growth slowed and it reached 7.760 acres. No growth was seen after 8/9. The fire destroyed 23 habitable structures and 7 outbuildings and damaged 2 other structures. A firefighter from the Big Pine Volunteer Fire Department, working in a support role at the incident command post, suffered an acute medical emergency and died on August 11. The fire fully was contained on 8/17/2020. The cost of containment was $13.9 million.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 3, 12:52 PM PST, 1 hour 38 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Hanford CA 152 PM PDT Mon Aug 3 2020 .SYNOPSIS... High pressure will give way to an approaching trough of low pressure and a secondary low pressure system. Winds will be gusty tonight and Tuesday and temperatures will have a robust cool down through Thursday. Later this week and this weekend, a warming trend will begin with the weather remaining dry. && .DISCUSSION... Ridge of high pressure continues to flex its muscle with the center of the anticyclone over the lower Colorado River Valley. As a result, temperatures over the forecast area show little change from yesterday. Upstream, a dry trough of low pressure is noted on water vapor imagery making inroads into Northern California and this is the harbinger of the cooler and refreshing weather pattern that is knocking at the Central California Interior's door. As is the case in all weather pattern changes, winds will become frisky this evening and overnight and will linger through the passes and canyons Tuesday. Temperatures on Tuesday will be markedly cooler over especially Merced County as the onshore flow and lowering heights aloft will keep highs into just the low 80s while over the remainder of the lower elevations a more modest cooling of just a few degrees will ensue. On Wednesday with heights aloft falling to around 5830 meters as the trough axis swings into Central California, another retreat in highs will occur with low 80s over Merced County...around 90 in the Fresno area and lower 90s in Bakersfield. The coolest day for areas south of Fresno and over the Kern County Desert will be Thursday as the Indian Wells Valley will observe an unusual early August day below 100 degrees. From Friday through the weekend forecast models develop and weak low pressure system along the NorCal coast however the airmass over the region will begin to moderate as heights increase. Although not a fast warm up, highs will inch up a few degrees each day from the mid week "coolness". The year of the "Nonsoon" continues with models keeping a dry westerly flow pattern into the region through the next 10 days. && .AVIATION... Northwest winds gusts near 30 mph are likely in the San Joaquin Valley late this afternoon and this evening. West to northwest wind gusts as high as 55 mph are probable through and below mountain passes in Kern County today and tonight. Otherwise, VFR conditions will prevail at MCE, MER, FAT, VIS, and BFL through at least then next 24 hours. && .AIR QUALITY ISSUES... On Monday August 3 2020... Unhealthy for sensitive groups in Sequoia National Park and Forest. Further information is available at Valleyair.org && .CERTAINTY... The level of certainty for days 1 and 2 is high. The level of certainty for days 3 through 7 is high. Certainty levels include low...medium...and high. Please visit www.weather.gov/hnx/certainty.html for additional information an/or to provide feedback. && .HNX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Wind Advisory until 6 AM PDT Tuesday for CAZ196-198-199. && public...Dudley aviation....Dudley weather.gov/hanford
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
The Stagecoach fire began August 3rd and was fully contained on August 17th. The fire burned 7,760 acres and destroyed 23 habitable structures and 7 out buildings as well as damaging 2 other structures. One fire fighter suffered a medical emergency while working in the Incident Command Post and died on August 11th.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildfire, Lake Isabella | 2020-08-11 | 61 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Indirect |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in California, August 2020
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 917670.