Scu Lightning Complex

Wildfire in Stanislaus, Santa Clara, Alameda and San Joaquin counties, August 2020

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/8125/scu-lightning-complex-2020

Key facts

Started August 16, 2020
Contained September 11, 2020, after 26 days
Burned 396,824 acres
2nd largest fire of 2020 and 6th largest in California's records
Cause Lightning
Buildings 225 destroyed, 26 damaged
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Stanislaus County 175,688 acres
  2. Santa Clara County 165,225 acres
  3. Alameda County 24,498 acres
  4. San Joaquin County 24,336 acres
  5. Merced County 3,766 acres
  6. Contra Costa County 3,306 acres

Communities

  1. Diablo Grande 107 acres
  2. Sunol 21 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.

Buildings damaged

  1. Destroyed Over 50% damaged 225
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 4
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 7
  4. Affected Up to 10% damaged 15

Buildings CAL FIRE inspected after the fire, by how badly each was damaged. Inspectors record homes, businesses and outbuildings within 100 meters of the fire, and cannot always reach every one, so the counts can differ slightly from other reports.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1950 Mt. Stakes Fire 1,488 acres shared
  2. 1951 Smiths Ridge Fire 4,417 acres in total 4,361 acres shared
  3. 1951 Will Gill & Son Fire 1,280 acres shared
  4. 1952 Shanti Ashrama Fire 5,430 acres shared
  5. 1952 Saunders Fire 7,219 acres in total 4,747 acres shared
  6. 1953 Beauregard Fire 1,548 acres shared
  7. 1955 Fletcher Fire 6,517 acres in total 4,458 acres shared
  8. 1961 Bollinger Ridge Fire 32,866 acres in total 31,930 acres shared
  9. 1970 Copper Mtn. Fire 2,500 acres in total 2,396 acres shared
  10. 1982 Sweeny Fire Cause: Smoking 1,711 acres shared
  11. 1995 Orestimba Fire Cause: Debris burning 1,771 acres shared
  12. 2003 Del_puerto_2 Fire Cause: Lightning 5,909 acres shared
  13. 2003 Annie Fire Cause: Lightning 18,122 acres shared
  14. 2003 Jump Fire 4,894 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,507 acres shared
  15. 2004 Kincaid Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 1,223 acres shared
  16. 2006 Del Puerto Fire Cause: Debris burning 2,593 acres shared
  17. 2006 Canyon Fire 34,200 acres shared
  18. 2007 Lick Fire 47,748 acres in total · Cause: Debris burning 44,963 acres shared
  19. 2009 Corral Fire 12,243 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 6,114 acres shared
  20. 2015 Mccabe Fire 1,729 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,217 acres shared

And 48 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Scu Lightning 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