The Elephant Fire, burning in Sierra County east of Loyalton, has grown to 12,303 acres as of 4:41pm July 13th, and remains under active suppression, according to the CAL FIRE Incidents page.
Evacuation impacts continue to evolve across Sierra, Plumas, and Lassen counties. In Plumas County, evacuation warnings remain in effect for zones PLU-104-A and PLU-114, covering the area south of Chilcoot to the Sierra County line and east of Vinton to the Lassen County line. Residents in the warning area are urged to remain prepared to leave if conditions worsen.
In Lassen County, officials have downgraded the Evacuation Order for Zone LAS-451-A to an Evacuation Warning, allowing residents to return while remaining prepared to evacuate if fire conditions change. Additionally, the Evacuation Warning for Zone LAS-671-B has been lifted.
The fire continues to impact the surrounding area. Over the weekend, aerial firefighting operations were temporarily suspended after an unauthorized drone entered restricted airspace over the fire. The Sierra County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident and may seek criminal charges in coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration.
The advancing fire has also threatened utility infrastructure. Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative has warned that fire activity near South Scott Road could affect power lines, with outages possible until conditions are safe for crews to restore service.
Fire officials continue to urge residents to monitor official evacuation notifications as conditions can change rapidly.
