On September 5th, 2020, fires began raging across El Dorado, California. As a group of family and friends celebrated a gender reveal, they had no idea of the danger they were about to cause. Their smoke device used to show the gender caused a string of wildfires in El Dorado and affected the lives of people all around that area and more. The smoke from the device and the high fire danger in California at the time made the perfect combination for these fires to start.

Within just two days, the fire had spread across 8, 600 acres, and was only 7% contained. As of recently, it has burned 22,588  acres with 66% containment. This fire has also caused an extraordinary amount of damage. Nearly 855 structures have been destroyed, and 71 have been damaged. Along with that, several homes have been destroyed. More than 650 firefighters from different agencies have been working hard to battle the flames, with the help of water-dropping helicopters and other personnel.

Additionally, these fires have severely affected people living in areas around El Dorado.   About 21,000 residents have been forced to evacuate their homes in the communities of Volcanoville, Stumpy Meadows, and Quintet when the fires first began. As the fires progressed, more people were forced to leave other parts of California and even Oregon due to poor air quality. The smoke and ash in the air have created a solar-power eclipse that is putting California at risk for more power blackouts. Personnel has been sent to areas affected to help with the power infrastructure. 

As firefighters risk their lives to help the best they can, many of them have been wounded. So far, there have been 13 reported injuries since the fire started. Firefighter, Charles Morton, passed away on September 17 while battling the flames.  “Charlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,” says his colleagues. Thankfully, other personnel who were deployed to the scene have not reported any injuries.

To summarize this report, the El Dorado fires have affected the lives of numerous people living on the West Coast. Residents of El Dorado hope to have their lives back to normal as soon as possible.