Hoopa Valley fire prompts continued evacuation warnings, highway closure
The Mile Post 16 Fire continued into its second day Thursday. The fire, which started Wednesday morning as two vegetation fires that joined to produce a single conflagration, grew throughout that day.
Reports of the footprint of the fire varied widely throughout Wednesday and Thursday morning, with Cal Fire's incident report page noting a 50-acre fire while Watch Duty reports stated that the fire was a more modest 9.9 acres.
Hoopa Valley Tribe Emergency Manager RobRoy Latham told the Times-Standard that the burn area, including burn operations engineered to "establish a controlled perimeter around the wildfire," measured approximately 80 acres by Thursday at noon.
By 1 p.m., Watch Duty had modified its burn area to 80 acres, reporting that the fire was, at that time, 40% contained.
The incident response, initially led by the Hoopa Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services, is now being overseen by the North Coast Interagency Type 3 Incident Management Team, which took over command Wednesday evening.
"The Mile Post Fire remains within its established operational footprint. Firefighters continue working to keep the fire north of Mill Creek Road, south of Norton Creek, west of Norton Creek Road (and) east of Highway 96," an update issued by the incident management team noted.
That update said that the incident management team, led by Incident Commander Rod Mendes, is "continuing suppression operations in close coordination with the Hoopa Valley Tribe, USWFS, Yurok PD, Yurok Fire, Blue Lake Rancheria Fire, Hoopa PD, CHP, U.S. Forest Service, Humboldt County Sheriff and Cal Fire."
"Crews made substantial progress yesterday by strengthening containment lines in steep, rugged terrain," the incident management team said. "Heavy equipment successfully connected control lines along the upper portion of the incident, linking with the Division A/Division Z break. Firefighters are planning strategic burnout operations to strengthen containment where conditions allow. The fire continues to burn in extremely steep and inaccessible terrain with numerous hazards, including rolling rocks, burning material and heavy fuels. Firefighter safety remains the highest priority throughout all suppression operations."
Incident management also noted that "warm temperatures and low humidity may contribute to increased fire activity during the afternoon burning period."
"With changing weather conditions expected, the incident management team will continue evaluating resource needs daily to ensure sufficient personnel and equipment are available," the team's update said. "The team will also work closely with the Hoopa Valley Tribe to ensure suppression efforts reflect Tribal priorities and protect culturally significant areas."
No structures are currently threatened by the fire, according to that Thursday morning update.
Level 2 evacuation warnings remained in place Thursday morning for zones HIA-E002 and HIA-E003, northern and central portions of the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation. Those warnings note a "potential threat to life and/or property" and advise "those who require additional time to evacuate and those with pets and livestock should leave now."
An update issued Thursday morning by the Hoopa Valley Tribe Air Quality Program noted that air quality conditions in the region had improved from poor and unhealthy for sensitive people on Wednesday to "good" by Thursday morning. The program noted that the public currently needs to take no additional action to ensure respiratory health and safety while outdoors.
State Route 96 was closed Wednesday and remained fully closed from Carpenter Lane to a turnout at Postmile 18.98, as of 8:38 a.m. Thursday morning, according to Caltrans' QuickMap tool. An update provided by Caltrans at 9 a.m. on social media noted that SR 96 "will remain fully closed between Hoopa and Weitchpec in Humboldt County through today and overnight tonight," with plans to "reevaluate conditions early Friday morning."
"Caltrans continues to coordinate with responders including incident command, fire personnel, law enforcement and the U.S. Forest Service while maintaining the Route 96 closure," Caltrans spokesperson Myles Cochrane told the Times-Standard via email Thursday morning. "Hot spots, burning debris and fire-related rockfall remain near the highway, and there is potential for additional debris to reach the roadway. Caltrans crews are staffing the closure around the clock and continuing to assess conditions. Your readers are encouraged to follow Caltrans District 1 on Facebook or Instagram for the latest updates, and the earliest indication once things are safe enough to resume traffic. At this point, it looks like the highway will remain closed at least through tonight."
The Hoopa Valley Tribe also noted that, should travelers plan on using Dowd Road as a detour while in the area, they should observe protocols to avoid the spread of sudden oak death, or SOD, a deadly non-native plant pathogen. The Hoopa Valley Tribe declared a state of emergency with regard to SOD on Wednesday afternoon after the disease was detected on tan oak specimens "located on the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation downslope of the Dowd Road/Nixon Ranch Road approximately midway between Hoopa and Weitchpec" in May of this year.
"If you use Dowd Road … please follow the protocol to help prevent the spread of sudden oak death," the tribe advised. "… Wash all dirt and debris from your tires and apply a 10% bleach solution or ammonium-based disinfectant, such as Lysol or Formula 409."
The cause of the fire is reportedly still under investigation.
Stay informed
Evacuation warnings: Go to Protect.Genasys.com for a full zone description.
Fire information: For information regarding the Mile Post 16 Fire, current impact and evacuation areas, please go to HumboldtSheriff.org/Emergency, or call 707-441-5000.
Road closures: Check the Caltrans QuickMap app or go to https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
Robert Schaulis can be reached at 707-441-0585.
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This story was originally published July 9, 2026 at 2:04 PM.