Red Mountain Fire

Wildfire in Kern County, September 1970

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/2596/red-mountain-fire-1970

Key facts

Started September 26, 1970
Contained October 3, 1970, after 7 days
Burned 25,492 acres
8th largest fire of 1970
Cause Smoking
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Where it burned

County

  1. Kern County 25,489 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1921 Unnamed fire 125 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 2 acres shared
  2. 1926 Unnamed fire 38 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 37 acres shared
  3. 1931 Unnamed fire 92 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 91 acres shared
  4. 1965 Unnamed fire 179 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 84 acres shared
  5. 1968 Unnamed fire Cause: Miscellaneous 28 acres shared
  6. 1969 Unnamed fire Cause: Lightning 8 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 1974 Unnamed fire 40 acres in total · Cause: Arson 6 acres shared
  2. 1977 Bear Trap Fire 4,045 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 253 acres shared
  3. 1999 Black Gulch Fire 3,512 acres in total 139 acres shared
  4. 2003 Rancheria Fire 34 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 33 acres shared
  5. 2013 Shirley Fire Cause: Lightning 377 acres shared
  6. 2014 Ranch Fire 69 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 68 acres shared
  7. 2018 Basket Fire Cause: Campfire 15 acres shared
  8. 2021 French Fire 26,535 acres in total 7,253 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Red Mountain Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data