NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Mendocino National Forest officials said recent lightning strikes sparked fires in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness.

The Anthony Peak Lookout on the Mendocino National Forest reported several possible fires in the Yolla Bolly Wilderness on Monday at 4 p.m.

The lightning-caused East fire was confirmed Monday night, approximately 43 miles west of Red Bluff. It is estimated at 40 acres.

Resources assigned to the East fire include 10 smokejumpers and one 20-person crew. The fire is burning in snags and brush from the 2008 Yellow fire scar.

Another fire is located southeast of the East fire. It is called the Haynes fire and placed in monitor status.

Forest officials are evaluating many factors including firefighter safety and access to the fire, its location, potential areas of concern, likely growth over time and current and forecast weather to determine the strategy for managing this incident.

The strategy will consist of resource and protection objectives that will help reduce exposure to firefighters, remove hazardous fuels and decrease the probability for high severity wildfires in the future, forest officials reported.