North Complex

Wildfire in Plumas and Butte counties, August 2020

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/8134/north-complex-2020

Key facts

Started August 17, 2020
Contained December 3, 2020, after 108 days
Burned 318,797 acres
4th largest fire of 2020 and 8th largest in California's records
Cause Lightning
Buildings 2,352 destroyed, 119 damaged
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Plumas County 166,531 acres
  2. Butte County 152,198 acres

Communities

  1. Berry Creek 32,462 acres
  2. Forbestown 2,253 acres
  3. East Quincy 858 acres
  4. Bucks Lake 7 acres
  5. Spring Garden 4 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 2,352
  2. Major damage 25 to 50% damaged 10
  3. Minor damage 10 to 25% damaged 15
  4. Affected Up to 10% damaged 94

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. 1917 Unnamed fire 8,003 acres shared
  2. 1918 Unnamed fire 5,676 acres shared
  3. 1927 Unnamed fire 27,841 acres shared
  4. 1927 Unnamed fire 8,541 acres in total 7,696 acres shared
  5. 1929 Unnamed fire 4,844 acres shared
  6. 1929 Unnamed fire 4,065 acres shared
  7. 1931 Unnamed fire 5,468 acres in total 2,954 acres shared
  8. 1931 Unnamed fire 2,700 acres shared
  9. 1931 Unnamed fire 1,902 acres shared
  10. 1951 Milk Ranch Fire 21,979 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 4,432 acres shared
  11. 1966 Project 19 Fire 5,725 acres in total 5,209 acres shared
  12. 1999 Bucks Fire 34,236 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 13,999 acres shared
  13. 1999 Pidgeon Fire 4,713 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 4,558 acres shared
  14. 1999 Lookout Fire 2,615 acres in total · Cause: Lightning 1,886 acres shared
  15. 2008 Scotch Fire Cause: Lightning 13,008 acres shared
  16. 2008 South-Frey Fire Cause: Lightning 12,401 acres shared
  17. 2008 Friend-Darnell Fire Cause: Lightning 4,111 acres shared
  18. 2008 Craig Fire Cause: Debris burning 2,016 acres shared
  19. 2017 Ponderosa Fire Cause: Arson 4,015 acres shared
  20. 2018 Camp Fire 153,336 acres in total · Cause: Power lines 5,814 acres shared

And 116 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the North 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