Courtright Reservoir
Credit: USDA/(file) Sierra National Forest.
September 15, 2021 - CLOVIS, Calif. – After careful consideration, the Pacific Southwest Region is terminating Regional Closure Order 21-07 at midnight, September 15, 2021. This order, which was to be effective August 31 – September 17, 2021, closed California’s 18 USFS managed Forests due to the extreme fire danger across the state, increased risk to the public, a shortage of immediately available Incident Management Teams and first responder resources, among other considerations. These and other considerations have improved, yet extreme fire risk remains. As a result, SNF Fire Restriction Order 05-15-00-21-16, originally implemented from August 18 through November 15, will remain in place.
Upon termination of the Regional Closure Order, the Sierra NF will return to the Forest Orders that were in place prior to the Regional Order. Notably:
• Forest Order No. 05-15-00-21-17 (now numbered 21-19 to extend the date); SNF Recreation site, Road and Trail Closure. This is related to the remaining Creek Fire and tree mortality hazards on the Forest.
• Forest Order No. 05-15-51-21-18 Merced River Recreation Site, Road and Trail Closure; this is to preclude public access to unknown hazards that may exist in the area, while investigations continue.
• To truly put this into perspective, what this means is that over 95% of the acreage on the Sierra NF is not included in the above two Forest Orders after midnight September 15, 2021, just as it was prior to the Regional Closure Order.
Our strategy of re-issuing these Forest Orders on a monthly basis will continue so that as additional locations have been made safe for public use, they can be re-introduced into the accessible inventory as quickly as possible. It is never easy to implement closure orders, recognizing the important role of National Forests to peoples’ livelihood and quality of life, and for these reasons, why we are proud to announce just how much of the Sierra NF will not be included in a closure order. We thank all members of the public, our visitors, stakeholders, and all involved levels of government and enforcement for your patience, civility and understanding during this challenging period, realizing that the USFS staff lives on the Forest as well, and have dedicated our lives to careers of Public Service, serving you. We look forward to working collaboratively to address and resolve the many challenges the Sierra NF is currently facing.
Know Before You Go: Become familiar with the area that you are visiting. Call the local Forest Service office near the area you will be visiting to check conditions, restrictions and closures.
Follow the Sierra National Forest on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/SierraNF, and Like the Sierra National Forest on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SierraNF, or visit our website at www.fs.usda.gov/sierra for information on recreational activities.
Source SNF
