Wildfires Sweep California Gold Country, Devastate Historic Chinese Camp

By Staff, Agencies

A cluster of lightning-sparked wildfires ripped through parts of Northern California on Wednesday, September 3, forcing mass evacuations and devastating the historic Gold Rush town of Chinese Camp.

According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection [CalFire], nearly two dozen separate blazes ignited by a lightning storm on Tuesday have scorched more than 13,000 acres of dry grass, brush, and timber in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties.

Chinese Camp, a remote village with fewer than 100 residents nestled in the Sierra Nevada foothills, bore the brunt of the flames. Once home to thousands of Chinese immigrants during the mid-19th century Gold Rush, the town lost dozens of homes to the fire, Reuters reported.

Two historic buildings, including an old stagecoach stop, were gutted, and a hilltop cemetery was scorched. Remarkably, the adjacent church, founded in 1854, escaped the flames, CalFire spokesperson Jaime Williams said. Three other landmarks—the Chinese Camp Store and Tavern, the town’s post office, and its pagoda-style public school—also survived.

Authorities placed the entire town and several nearby communities under mandatory evacuation as more than 600 firefighters battled the growing infernos. The full scope of destruction remains unclear, but no casualties have been reported.

“We are securing all available resources — including support from our federal partners — to fight this growing lightning complex fire in Calaveras and Tuolumne counties,” Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.

Evacuation shelters were quickly opened for displaced residents, with additional facilities set up for livestock and pets. Utility crews were deployed to repair fire-damaged power lines, transformers, and poles.

The 22 fires, collectively dubbed the TCU September Lightning Complex, ranked as the largest wildfire event in California on Wednesday, though far less destructive than the Los Angeles fires in January, which killed at least 31 people and destroyed nearly 16,000 homes.