The Chimney fire was just 10% contained by Monday evening.
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That fire connected with a third, the Jerusalem Fire, last August.
At 12:40 p.m. Tuesday, smoke rose above hills in the opposite direction – on the northwest side of Clear Lake.
“Lake County is proud of its blue-collar roots”, McGuire said. He is suspected in numerous fires in Lake County over the past year. It also resulted in school closures in the Konocti Unified School District.
Fire crews have gained even more ground against on a Northern California wildfire that has destroyed 175 homes, businesses and other structures and charred almost 7 square miles. “My thoughts continue to be with the people of Lake County during this hard time”, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Director Ken Pimlott said.
The latest blaze, which began Saturday, had burned through nearly five square miles Monday. It initially spread southeast and by late Saturday night had grown to 900 acres, threatening some 200 homes with about 500 residents evacuated. The flames burned faster in the grassy areas, making them less likely to burn homes but also making them more vulnerable to wind shifts, Sherwin said.
Fire crews gained some significant ground on a massive Northern California wildfire that has destroyed 175 homes, businesses and other structures and charred almost 7 square miles.
The new reality roared into Lower Lake on Sunday, when wind-driven flames fed by pines in the mountains and oaks that cluster on the rolling hills close to town wiped out whole blocks, authorities said.
But as winds increased, embers shot over the roadway. Berlant said crews gained ground on the fire by hitting it hard Monday with fire retardant drops from air tankers. Firefighters said they were surprised by the arrest.
The Clayton fire started Saturday off Highway 29 and Clayton Creek, south of the community of Lower Lake in Lake County, according to Cal Fire.
The contrast of what survived and what didn’t is great.
Last September, the Valley Fire, which investigators discovered was sparked by faulty wiring on a hot tub, burned 76,067 acres around the communities of Cobb and Middletown, killing four people and destroying 1,322 homes.
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“It’s hard to look at that man and know that he’s the one that’s caused all of this because I have close friends who lost everything”, Lower Lake resident Andrea McMullen said. Nearby lay the body of his black cow.
