Bull Fire near California border marks 6th ignition in Reno hills in 2 months

LATEST Oct. 2, 5:21 p.m.RENO, Nev. — Flames continue to spread into mountainous terrain above Reno, near the California-Nevada border. The Bull Fire has now grown to 2,500 acres, said Chris Buckley, spokesperson for the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, which is in unified command on the fire with Truckee Meadows Fire District and Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. 

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“I’ve got eyes on it right now,” Buckley said by phone. “It is looking like very steep, rugged terrain, a lot of timber up there. It’s putting out a lot of smoke, so you can see smoke from the greater Reno area.”

The fire still has no containment. However, Buckley noted that air resources are leading a large initial attack on the flames.

“We’ve got a very, very heavy attack presence,” Buckley said. 

The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for the forested area surrounding the fire. Nearby neighborhoods have been given a “get set” evacuation warning.

Oct. 2, 4:05 p.m.The Bull Fire has grown to 1,100 acres as it continues to burn north of Verdi, near the California-Nevada border, on Friday afternoon, according to an update from the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District. Currently, no structures are threatened. 

Winds are pushing the fire into a burn scar left by the Hawk Fire, which burned in the same area in August. Firefighters hope the scar will reduce the intensity of the flames and give crews a better chance of combating the blaze. There is no containment, but resources are focused on the fire’s southern flank, to keep the flames away from Verdi. 

Resources have arrived quickly, including eight fixed-wing planes, five helicopters, and more than 50 fire engines, hand crews and dozers. More than 250 personnel are working on the fire, according to the department. The cause is under investigation. 

Oct. 2, 2:06 p.m.A wildfire burning near the California-Nevada border marks the sixth ignition in the hills above Reno over the past two months. 

The Bull Fire grew to 150 acres within a couple of hours after it was first reported on Friday morning, according to the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District. The fire is burning in a hilly region above homes in Verdi and east of Dog Valley. 

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Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District and the U.S Forest Service responded to the wildfire, the agency wrote on Facebook. The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office issued “get set” evacuation warnings for homes in Verdi, Mogul and the western portion of Somersett. 

A plume of smoke grew darker by the minute as it rose above northwest Reno. The smoke drifted above the fire scar from the Hawk Fire, which burned more than 15,000 acres across Peavine Peak, north of Reno, in August.

The Bull Fire follows a handful of other wildfires that were ignited in the hills northwest of Reno since August. The Bug and Fred Mountain fires burned a combined 93,733 acres after they started burning on Aug. 8. Two days later, the Stallion Fire ignited in the same area and would go on to burn 40,691 acres.

Two weeks later, on Aug. 22, the Hawk Fire started burning north of Reno and grew quickly, with flames spreading northeast over Peavine Peak and into the North Valleys neighborhoods. Authorities issued evacuation orders and warnings that impacted about 90,000 residents. Flames destroyed 47 homes and at least six people were injured in the fire. One person died from burns sustained in the fire. 

Then, on Sept. 16, a fifth wildfire started burning on the California side of the state border, near Floriston, a small town in the narrow Truckee River canyon, where Interstate 80 runs through. Authorities quickly shut down westbound traffic on Interstate 80 as the Floriston Fire grew quickly up a steep hillside above the highway. It burned 622 acres near Verdi. 

The Bull Fire is burning in an area between the footprints of the Floriston Fire and the Hawk Fire.