The Ranch Fire, one of the Mendocino Complex fires, became the largest wildfire in California history on Sunday morning, Cal Fire confirmed.
The Ranch Fire scorched 282,479 acres by Sunday morning — bypassing the previous record holder, December’s Thomas Fire, which burned 281,893 acres in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, according to Lynne Tolmachoff, a Cal Fire spokeswoman.
Firefighters saw extreme fire behavior Saturday night, and hot, dry and windy weather conditions continue in the area of the fire, Cal Fire said in its report Sunday morning. Between Saturday morning and Sunday morning, the Ranch Fire burned 6,173 acres, according to Cal Fire.
Firefighters plan Sunday to try to contain the northwestern part of the Ranch Fire and will also try to keep the fire from moving west, Cal Fire said.