The Shirley Fire was a

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

that started on June 13, 2014 at 5:00 PM PDT, south of Shirley Meadows,

Kern County Kern County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield. Kern County comprises the Bakersfield, California, Metropolitan statistical area. The county sp ...

, California, in the southern part of the

Sequoia National Forest Sequoia National Forest is located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. The U.S. National Forest is named for the majestic Giant Sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees which populate 38 distinct groves within the boundari ...

. The fire rapidly spread, due to dry weather and drought conditions. By June 15, the Shirley Fire had expanded to , and it was reported as being only 10% contained. As a result, parts of the National Forest were closed, and evacuations were ordered for residences in the area. On June 16, the Shirley Fire expanded eastward towards

Lake Isabella Lake Isabella also called Isabella Lake, is a reservoir in Kern County, California, United States created by the earthen Isabella Dam. It was formed in 1953 when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dammed the Kern River at the junction of its two f ...

to , and began to threaten more homes. The cause of the wildfire was not determined. During the afternoon of June 16, the wildfire was reported to have expanded to , but the wildfire was also 50% contained. On June 17, the spread of the fire had stopped, and it was reported to be 75% contained. During the late afternoon of June 17, it was reported that the Shirley Fire was 85% contained. On June 18, the fire was 90% contained. Soon afterwards, many of the firefighters were withdrawn in order to prepare for possible future wildfire outbreaks, due to an approaching

heat wave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...

in which temperatures were expected to be in the hundreds. During the same day, the administration of Sequoia National Forest stated that the Shirley Fire was expected to continue burning within the containment line for the next several days, due to continuing drought conditions, an approaching

, and the amount of timber the fire could consume as fuel within its perimeter. On June 20, it was reported that the perimeter of the Shirley Fire was 100% contained, but the wildfire continued to burn well inside of its perimeter while producing moderate amounts of smoke, which was expected to continue for the next several days. The firefighting efforts and the damage caused by the wildfire cost a total of $12,155,450 (2014 USD). On June 21, the

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

Forest Service and the DOI Bureau of Land Management worked together to initiate cleanup efforts, assess the damage caused by the Shirley Fire, and assist in recovery efforts. The two agencies also worked to help bring the Shirley Fire under control, as well as to help the wildlife recover, and to prevent further degradation of resources. At 6:00 PM PDT on June 26, the roadblocks issued for the Shirley Fire were lifted, even though the wildfire continued to burn within the containment line. On July 15, the Shirley Fire was 100% controlled.

References

{{California wildfires 2014 California wildfires Wildfires in Kern County, California June 2014 events in the United States