Mendenhall Fire

Wildfire in Mendocino and Lake counties, September 1987

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/4214/mendenhall-fire-1987

Key facts

Started September 2, 1987
Contained September 17, 1987, after 15 days
Burned 65,468 acres
2nd largest fire of 1987 and 91st largest in California's records
Cause Lightning
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Mendocino County 48,778 acres
  2. Lake County 16,691 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. 1922 Boardman Ridge Fire 1,812 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 90 acres shared
  2. 1944 Boardman Fire 19,510 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 6,059 acres shared
  3. 1946 Newhall Fire 6,141 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 2,176 acres shared
  4. 1950 Eden Valley Fire 157 acres in total 28 acres shared
  5. 1951 Boardman Ridge Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 6,672 acres shared
  6. 1966 Horse Fire 6,974 acres in total · Cause: Campfire 7 acres shared
  7. 1985 Unnamed fire Cause: Lightning 9 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 1998 San Hedrin Fire Cause: Arson 5 acres shared
  2. 1998 Garcia Fire 138 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 120 acres shared
  3. 2003 Boardman Fire Cause: Lightning 511 acres shared
  4. 2003 Horse (Hull) Fire Cause: Lightning 102 acres shared
  5. 2003 Deafy Fire 4,782 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 44 acres shared
  6. 2008 Monkey Rock Fire 1,886 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,644 acres shared
  7. 2008 Mill Fire 3,042 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 191 acres shared
  8. 2008 Island Fire Cause: Arson 46 acres shared
  9. 2018 Ranch Fire 410,202 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 233 acres shared
  10. 2020 August Complex 1,032,700 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 50,994 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Mendenhall 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