Sixteen Complex

Wildfire in Colusa and Yolo counties, September 2012

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/7197/sixteen-complex-2012

Key facts

Started September 4, 2012
Contained September 15, 2012, after 11 days
Burned 17,942 acres
10th largest fire of 2012
Cause Arson
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Colusa County 17,690 acres
  2. Yolo County 250 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. 1950 Wendell Payne #3 Fire 568 acres in total 503 acres shared
  2. 1951 R.haswell Fire 1,196 acres in total 246 acres shared
  3. 1952 Jackson Fire 265 acres shared
  4. 1964 Cache Creek Fire 375 acres in total 30 acres shared
  5. 1966 Cortina Ridge Fire 16,323 acres in total 12,405 acres shared
  6. 1968 Elk Creek Fire 724 acres in total 101 acres shared
  7. 1970 Rumsey Series Fire 292 acres in total 179 acres shared
  8. 1972 Pocket Gulch Fire 10,431 acres in total 7 acres shared
  9. 1972 Jackson Fire 1,958 acres in total 1,564 acres shared
  10. 1987 Haswell Fire 344 acres in total 242 acres shared
  11. 1998 Middle Fire 5,993 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 888 acres shared
  12. 1999 Rumsey Fire 2,995 acres in total 144 acres shared
  13. 1999 Sixteen Fire 37,893 acres in total · Cause: Arson 184 acres shared
  14. 2002 Sixteen Fire 1,514 acres in total · Cause: Arson 249 acres shared
  15. 2004 Rumsey Fire 38,763 acres in total · Cause: Arson 216 acres shared
  16. 2006 Rumsey Fire 81 acres in total · Cause: Arson 78 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 2020 Hennessey Fire 305,352 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,156 acres shared

Acres are the land each fire shares with the Sixteen Complex, 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