As the Jones Fire nears full containment, a report on the 705-acre blaze was given to Nevada County Supervisors Tuesday afternoon. The chief of Cal Fire’s Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit, Brian Estes, says instead of gusty winds residents were victims of what he termed an “anomaly” lightning year, which occurs about every 10 to 13 years. He says lightning strikes are normally confined to the upper elevations of the Sierra…

And since the Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit is one of Cal Fire’s largest, other major fires that had also broken out pulled away a lot of local personnel and equipment from the Jones Fire. So Sheriff Shannan Moon praised the effort in keeping the blaze from being an even worse disaster…

Estes also mentioned that the Jones Fire also set a record for the most air retardant used in one day. At the height of the danger, over four-thousand homes were under a mandatory evacuation order, and another 12-thousand under an advisory order. 14 homes were destroyed, with three damaged.