Franklin Canyon Fuel Break (2014)

Franklin Canyon, south of Davis Creek, was identified in the Modoc Community Wildfire Protection Plan as a priority due to rapid tree mortality and overgrown roads limiting access.

In 2014, MFSC received two grants to construct 60‑foot fuel breaks covering 29 acres along Co. Rd. 52 and around private parcels.

  • Phase 1: Funded by CalFire’s SRA Fire Prevention Fund, crews constructed fuel breaks along Co. Rd. 52 to improve ingress/egress and staging areas for firefighters.
  • Phase 2: Funded by the U.S. Forest Service through the California Fire Safe Council, crews extended fuel breaks around private property boundaries.

Treatments included hazard tree removal, thinning to increase crown spacing, pruning to reduce ladder fuels, and widening road visibility. Slash was piled for winter burning and chipped where accessible.

A forest trail with a parked truck and people in orange safety vests beside it.
A dirt road through a forest with pine trees, fallen branches, and a clear blue sky.
A forest scene with chopped wood logs stacked by a dirt path, and a parked car to the side.
Forest with fallen trees, logs, and piles of branches, surrounded by tall green trees.
A forest trail with a parked truck and people in orange safety vests beside it.
A dirt road through a forest with pine trees, fallen branches, and a clear blue sky.
A forest scene with chopped wood logs stacked by a dirt path, and a parked car to the side.
Forest with fallen trees, logs, and piles of branches, surrounded by tall green trees.