{"id":47032,"date":"2017-10-12T05:13:57","date_gmt":"2017-10-12T05:13:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=47032"},"modified":"2017-10-12T05:13:57","modified_gmt":"2017-10-12T05:13:57","slug":"whole-towns-evacuated-as-northern-california-firestorm-grows-at-least-23-people-are-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/news\/whole-towns-evacuated-as-northern-california-firestorm-grows-at-least-23-people-are-dead.html","title":{"rendered":"Whole towns evacuated as Northern California firestorm grows, at least 23 people are dead"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whole towns evacuated as Northern California firestorm grows, at least 23 people are dead<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

The death toll rose to 23 on Wednesday night from the rapidly spreading firestorm in California wine country as firefighters were battling the return of dangerous winds that sparked new evacuations.<\/span><\/p>\n

All residents of Calistoga and Geyserville were ordered to leave their homes as firefighters braced for a tough fight overnight on numerous fronts of the fires. About 8:20 p.m., mandatory evacuations were also issued for parts of eastern Sonoma Valley, including Castle Road and 7th Street East north of Lovall Valley Road.<\/span><\/p>\n

Napa city officials issued evacuation advisories for neighborhoods along the eastern edges of the city, warning residents to be prepared to leave. Just before 9 p.m., Santa Rosa police also issued an evacuation advisory for neighborhoods in the city\u2019s eastern end, while other neighborhoods along the north end of the city are under mandatory evacuation orders.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe fire is not an imminent threat, but the conditions may change quickly,\u201d the agency said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a red flag warning forecasting dangerous fire conditions took effect Wednesday evening in the Bay Area. Weather officials expect strong winds with gusts as high as 50 mph. Combined with dry fuels and low humidity, fires have the potential to spread quickly, according to the National Weather Service.<\/span><\/p>\n

The warning took effect at 5 p.m. in the North Bay Mountains and will take effect at 11 p.m. in the East Bay Hills, Santa Cruz Mountains and mountains in Monterey and San Benito counties.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a good heads-up to all the firefighters and emergency management that the conditions are going to be pretty bad in terms of the fire behaviors,\u201d said Will Pi, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. \u201cWe\u2019re expecting the strongest winds to be tonight and tomorrow morning.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

State and federal officials portrayed an all-out effort to fend off the devastating wildfires at a news conference at a state emergency operations center outside Sacramento.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an extremely stressful and challenging time,\u201d said Mark Ghilarducci, director of the Governor\u2019s Office of Emergency Services. \u201cWe are all hands on deck.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The situation remains very dangerous, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not going to be out of the woods for a great many days to come,\u201d said Cal Fire director Ken Pimlott. The state is still feeling the effects of the drought despite a recent wet winter, and there\u2019s \u201cexplosive vegetation\u201d fueling the blazes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had big fires in the past,\u201d Gov. Jerry Brown said. \u201cThis is one of the biggest.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Officials said 13 people have died in Sonoma County, six in Mendocino County, two in Yuba County and two in Napa County.<\/span><\/p>\n

Crews launched a desperate effort to extinguish key hot spots before heavy, fire-stoking winds could kick back up later in the day.<\/span><\/p>\n

Officials fear that strong winds forecast for Wednesday evening and Thursday morning will spread embers from the deadly Tubbs fire to populated areas of Santa Rosa and Calistoga that have so far been spared the flames \u2014 and new evacuation orders were issued. Shelters opened for evacuees will not ask anyone’s immigration status, Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are facing some pretty significant monsters,\u201d Cal Fire incident commander Bret Couvea told a room of about 200 firefighters and law enforcement officials at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds staging area Wednesday morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

Exhausted and sore firefighters fanned across scorched mountainsides attacking hot spots, chopping shrubs and using shovels and axes to clear smooth paths down to bare soil roughly four feet wide as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n

They were taking advantage of a lull in erratic winds to extinguish as many embers as possible and contain portions of fires burning out of control near populated areas before north winds were expected to pick up after midnight. Forecasts call for winds of up to 35 mph on mountaintops and heavily forested ridgelines north of Santa Rosa and Calistoga.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a worst-case scenario, the winds would shoot embers into still-green terrain, igniting walls of flame that could march back into already devastated communities such as Santa Rosa.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe clock is ticking, so we\u2019re giving it everything we\u2019ve got \u2014 hand crews, fire engines, bulldozers, air support \u2014 to keep the fire within the perimeter,\u201d Cal Fire Division Chief Ben Nicholls said, while using a razor-sharp blade to slice through dry grass and stubborn roots.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe like fighting massive fires,\u201d he added. \u201cA lot of what we\u2019re doing isn\u2019t that sexy. It\u2019s called mop-up, and right now it is critical.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Already, the Northern California fires have scorched an estimated 170,000 acres. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection estimates that around 3,500 structures have been destroyed.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Wednesday night, \u201cthe return of the north wind will have a strong influence on the southern portions of the Tubbs fire,\u201d a Cal Fire weather report said. \u201cWinds will be 25 to 30 miles per hour after 2 a.m. These strong winds have the potential to push the fire south back towards Calistoga and Santa Rosa, especially where the fire was active yesterday [Tuesday] on the north side.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

On Wednesday, the Lake County Sheriff\u2019s Office issued an advisory evacuation order for residents of Middletown \u2014 which was heavily damaged in the Valley fire just two years ago and rebuilt \u2014 as the Tubbs fire approached from the south.<\/span><\/p>\n

Late Tuesday night, evacuations were ordered in Calistoga for the Tubbs fire, and in other areas of Napa and Sonoma counties for the Atlas Peak fire, the Nuns fire and the Pocket fire, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe [Atlas] fire became active overnight, started burning more of the community,\u201d Cal Fire spokeswoman Lynne Tolmachoff said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Firefighters hoped to take advantage of the lull in the winds Wednesday morning and afternoon to attack hot spots and put out as many embers as possible before they can be revived and blown into areas that haven\u2019t burned yet, they said.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Wednesday evening, the Tubbs fire had reached about 28,000 acres and was 10% contained. Other fires ranging in size from 1,800 to 21,000 acres burned throughout the area and in surrounding counties.<\/span><\/p>\n

As of Wednesday morning, Sonoma County had received about 300 reports of missing persons and had confirmed that 110 of those people were safe, said Sonoma County Sheriff\u2019s Deputy Brandon Jones.<\/span><\/p>\n

Though some evacuation orders in Yuba and Nevada counties were lifted, officials estimated that upwards of 50,000 people were still out of their homes. More people in Sonoma and Napa counties were asked to leave their homes Tuesday night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Napa County Supervisor Diane Dillon said Cal Fire commanders decided in the middle of the night to evacuate nearly half of the valley town of Calistoga, and by 3:30 a.m., Dillon and town officials along with police crews were walking house to house in the thick smoke, knocking on doors and telling occupants to leave.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was stunned to hear Cal Fire was recommending a massive, for Calistoga, evacuation,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cWhen we went out to talk, people were already leaving. People were alert to the situation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

During a packed community meeting with emergency officials inside the Santa Rosa High School gym Tuesday evening, Sonoma County residents battered by the deadly wildfires were told that a red flag warning forecasting potentially hazardous fire conditions had been issued for Wednesday.<\/span><\/p>\n

This comes after cooler weather allowed firefighters to gain ground Tuesday morning, only to see the flames flare up again with afternoon winds.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is nowhere near over. This is still very dangerous,\u201d Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano said Tuesday night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Officials hope, though, that they won\u2019t again face the 80 mph winds that stoked fires so quickly Sunday night.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Mendocino County, where the Redwood and Potter fires have reached a combined 29,500 acres with 5% containment, one resident recalled the rush to get out in time.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was just after 1 a.m. Monday when Jaime Lynn Lojowsky woke up to a pounding at the door.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a fire on the mountain,\u201d she heard her neighbor tell her husband. \u201cIt\u2019s an emergency. It\u2019s an emergency.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Lojowsky, who lives in Redwood Valley with her husband, Mac, and two young girls, looked out her back window. Normally, she\u2019d see bright stars, the moon peeking between the redwoods, pines and oak trees. It was one of the reasons why she\u2019d moved from crowded and light-polluted Southern California more than a year ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

This time, white smoke choked the night sky. The hillside was on fire. Flames licked the backyard of her 1-acre lot.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lojowsky\u2019s husband ran out the door to knock on neighbors\u2019 doors to wake them, telling them to get out. One home had already caught fire.<\/span><\/p>\n

The winds picked up. The flames raced toward them.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cJaime, the house is going to go. What do you want to take?\u201d he asked.<\/span><\/p>\n

She had minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the outside, the couple tried to stay calm for 5-year-old Isabella. Lojowsky asked her to grab some things she\u2019d like to take. Isabella grabbed her blanket and a stash of Halloween-themed toys.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the inside, Lojowsky panicked.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to die. I don\u2019t want my babies to die like this,\u201d she thought. \u201cThis can\u2019t be happening.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Lojowsky roused her youngest \u2014 2-year-old Lourdes \u2014 from bed. She piled the girls into her Kia Sedona. They were met with a cloud of white smoke when she opened her garage door. Ash and fire rained down on the vehicle as she drove down the driveway and into the main road. Her husband followed in a truck behind them. About a mile down the road, a wall of flames blocked their path.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was the main way out. She\u2019d never gone the back way \u2014 a windy, dirt and gravel mountain road through a canyon.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some cars barreled through the flames. Others went off the road.<\/span><\/p>\n

She was uncertain on what to do. If she turned back, would she be met by a raging fire?<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s when she spotted a Cal Fire truck. The crew directed her to go back through the mountain pass. It was safe, they reassured her. She turned back and drove past her home. She zoomed by her neighbor\u2019s house and saw the cars still parked outside. She wondered if they\u2019d make it out. They had three young boys.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey have to leave now,\u201d she thought.<\/span><\/p>\n

Her car climbed up the mountain pass, tailing her husband\u2019s truck. She called him on her cellphone, asking him to dial 911 to find out what they should do. She just wanted someone to tell her what to do or where to go.<\/span><\/p>\n

The sky was still full of white smoke. She could see the flames in her rearview mirror. Lojowsky just kept driving, looking forward and keeping an eye on the gravel road speckled with potholes. Her vehicle weaved on a dirt road through a dense forest of redwoods, pines and oak trees. She could hardly see the road in front of her.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ten minutes later, Isabella broke her silence.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGreat news, Mom. I can see the moon,\u201d she said. \u201cI can see stars.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Lojowsky, who has fire insurance, would later discover that her house and farm had burned down. Only the brick fireplace remains of Lojowsky\u2019s three-bedroom home. It\u2019s unclear whether her chickens survived. But her family, two dogs and cats had made it out alive.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-\u00a0http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/local\/lanow\/la-me-ln-fires-northern-california-20171011-story.html<\/span><\/p>\n

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