On Sept. 12, state officials said faulty wiring in a hot tub ignited the Valley Fire, which burned another 76,067 acres mostly in Lake County.
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Last September, one of California’s most destructive wildfires ravaged a series of small towns just a half-hour from Lower Lake, whose residents were forced to evacuate.
“Emotions are still incredibly raw from the Valley Fire”, state Senator Mike McGuire said at a community meeting and press conference, referring to a 2015 blaze that killed four people and destroyed more than 1,300 homes.
Residents in Lower Lake and surrounding communities are still recovering from California’s third-most-destructive wildfire a year ago, which burned 120 square miles and cost more than $1.5 billion in damages. An army of firefighters and equipment poured into the rural county during the night. At least 4,000 people are under evacuation orders.
UPDATE 6:57 a.m.: CAL FIRE says the Clayton Fire in Lake County has destroyed more than 100 structures.
Officials said at least 175 structures were destroyed in the town with working-class families and retirees drawn by a slower lifestyle and lower housing prices compared with the San Francisco Bay Area, a more than two-hour drive away. The following schools will are closed Monday in the Konocti Unified School District because of the fire: Lower Lake High, Lower Lake Elementary, Carle, Konocti Education Center, Burns Valley, Pomona, East Lake and Clearlake Creativity Center.
The Lower Lake fire broke out Saturday afternoon and exploded to almost 5 square miles as it fed on bone-dry vegetation. The area is just over 100 miles north of San Francisco.
In the San Bernardino Mountains east of Los Angeles, the “Pilot” fire, which erupted on Sunday, was 70 percent contained after charring almost 8,000 acres of dry chaparral, grass and timber.
Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant added that the fire, which had scorched 3,000 acres by Monday morning, was only five percent contained.
Division Chief Ted Smith of the Ventura County Fire Department agrees with Brown. But she and her husband believe they weren’t so fortunate this time.
“The fire activity could change in a moment’s notice right now”, said Suzie Blankenship, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Even as the fire rages through timber and brush, but Monterey County is looking ahead. Its Office of Emergency Services already has a notice up on its website: “Homeowners who need assistance with permits for rebuilding should contact the Resource Management Agency”.
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How much longer will this wildfire season last?
