A timelapse video shared on social media shows thousands of lightning strikes bombarding California on Tuesday, resulting in a wildfire outbreak across the state.
Newsweek reached out to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Dry thunderstorms hit California on Tuesday, creating over 10,000 lightning strikes that greatly increased the state’s wildfire risk. Dozens of blazes ignited from the storms. In one case, a lightning strike sparked the 6-5 Fire, which rapidly scorched the historic California “Gold Rush” town of Chinese Camp, including burning several homes.
What To Know
Shortly after the storms struck, extreme-weather chaser Colin McCarthy shared satellite data on X that showed lightning spread across California.
“California has been bombarded by over 10,000 lightning strikes today, sparking dozens of new wildfires,” McCarthy wrote in the post. “It’s about to get really smoky.”
California has been bombarded by over 10,000 lightning strikes today, sparking dozens of new wildfires.
It’s about to get really smoky. pic.twitter.com/H9yOvliqfV
— Colin McCarthy (@US_Stormwatch) September 3, 2025
The largest of the lightning fires is the TCU September Lightning Complex burning in Calaveras and Tuolumne counties in Central California. The blaze has exploded over nearly 12,000 acres since igniting on Tuesday.
As of the most recent update from CAL FIRE, it is zero percent contained. The complex includes “22 distinct fires that occurred around the time of a lightning storm that passed through the area,” the update said. Challenging terrain requires fire crews to hike in by foot to fight the flames.
The 6-5 Fire in Tuolumne County also is zero percent contained.
One video posted on X by WeatherNation showed firefighter body cam footage capturing a “huge” lightning strike in Fresno County.
“HUGE lightning caught on body cam of a firefighter in the early morning hours in Fresno County, CA as numerous fires have broken out recently in California,” WeatherNation posted Wednesday morning. “Dry lightning like this has sparked multiple fires, including a new set of fires dubbed The TCU September Lightning Complex.”
What People Are Saying
CAL FIRE, in an update about the TCU September Lightning Complex: “Multiple communities continue to be at risk, including ancestral tribal lands, and evacuation orders and warnings remain in place.”
McCarthy, in another post to X: “Much of Chinese Camp, a historic Gold Rush town in California and one of the oldest in the state, has been burned to the ground tonight by the 6-5 Wildfire. A sobering night across the Sierra Foothills, with many dangerous wildfires sparked by today’s dry lightning outbreak.”
What Happens Next
Firefighting resources are combating the blazes statewide in containment efforts. People in the affected areas should monitor evacuation orders and warnings.
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