Updates: Valley fire spreads further into Napa County

UPDATE 5:15 p.m. THE GEYSERS

The fire’s spread into Sonoma County, in the Mayacmas Mountains where The Geysers power plant operates, remained in check Tuesday, according to Cal Fire.

“There’s been a lot of good work in The Geysers,” said Cal Fire spokesman Paul Lowenthal, as the fire had settled down enough in that area Tuesday for firefighters to be able to work alongside it. “They’ve been able to get in and cut line.” A task force of firefighters on six engines from Sonoma and Marin counties remained on the Sonoma County side of the mountain Tuesday protecting The Geysers geothermal facilities. Some damage occurred there Sunday from the fire but since then the fire has been pushed back and was burning in another direction, fire officials said.

UPDATE: 4:35 p.m. FIRE MAKES A RUN

The Valley fire Tuesday afternoon was making a run to the southeast, further into Napa County. The spread was estimated to be a few hundred additional acres, burning south of Butts Canyon, Cal Fire spokesman Paul Lowenthal said.

An air attack was underway, working with many firefighters on the ground were attempting to steer the flames toward an area that burned last year. Lowenthal said the fire could be better controlled if they can get it to the already- scarred ground with its light amounts of brush. There were no communities immediately threatened and the run wasn’t generating any new evacuations. Pope Valley apparently is the closest area, sitting southeast of the fire. The run began at about 3 p.m. and has been the most active move the fire has taken Tuesday so far.

UPDATE 4:20 p.m.

The only residents allowed to return to their homes of the 19,000 or so evacuated in the midst of the destructive Valley fire have been those from Clearlake Riviera, Riveria West and Riviera Heights. The areas, near Clear Lake, south of Kelseyville, were evacuated Sunday morning on the orders of Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin. Residents were allowed home Tuesday morning, according to a Lake County sheriff’s news release.

Cal Fire officials supervising the firefight ordered evacuations in several other areas in the fire’s path but weren’t involved in the Riviera-area evacuation, a Cal Fire spokesman said Tuesday.

Martin said he ordered residents out of their homes because he feared the rapidly spreading fire would cross Highway 29 and head toward the lake-front communities. As it turned out, the fire was halted about a half-mile from the highway. “This fire spread nearly 10 miles in a 16-hour period,” Martin said, calling the evacuation the “safe decision.”

al Fire officials Tuesday late afternoon were calculating how many people live in the area, to determine how many now remained evacuated from the fire.

UPDATE 3:10 p.m. SEARCH FOR BODIES IN FIRE'S WAKE

While one Anderson Springs woman has been found dead in her home after the Valley fire raced across much of Cobb Mountain, Lake County sheriff’s officials suspect she won’t be the only fatality. Sheriff Brian Martin said there is a strong likelihood of additional deaths due to how fast the fire moved.

Deputies are working on a number of missing-person reports and cadaver dogs will be brought in to conduct searches in the next day or two, Martin said. He said the search for any bodies has to wait until more of the fire is brought under control and conditions improve.

UPDATE 2:45 p.m. LOOTING

Numerous law enforcement officers Tuesday were on patrol in the Hidden Valley Lake and Middletown areas, following reports of post-fire looting and two arrests. In one case, suspected looters were arrested Monday with burned-out safes in their vehicle, Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin said Tuesday.

Martin didn’t know further details about those arrests, and said others have been taken into custody on suspicion of looting as well. The sheriff said a press release to be issued later would include some of those details.

He said deputies are patrolling the fire area in general but are unable to stand guard at individual homes. He characterized Middletown and Hidden Valley Lake as most vulnerable because that’s where the most homes were left standing, he said.

There was a large police presence throughout that region Tuesday. Dozens of CHP, deputies and law enforcement officers from outside agencies patrolled in Hidden Valley Lake, where a roughly estimated 100 homes were lost and residents remained evacuated.

“It’s disgusting that some people would take advantage of others at a tragic time like this,” he said. “Unfortunately, it’s happening. We will continue our patrol for looters,” Martin said.

UPDATE 12:50 p.m. CALISTOGA VS. RINCON VALLEY CHRISTIAN GAME MOVED

Calistoga High School’s football game Friday against Rincon Valley Christian has been moved to the high school instead of the Napa County Fairgrounds, the Wildcats’ usual home field, because the fairgrounds is occupied by fire relief efforts. Kickoff is 4 p.m.

UPDATE 11:10 a.m. EMERGENCY AID

Sonoma County’s Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning learned as many as 15 county employees may have lost their homes in the Valley fire and subsequently approved an emergency resolution to help dozens of county employees who live in the fire zone.

Of Sonoma County’s thousands of employees, 49 full-time and nine part-time workers have homes caught within the fire zone. Of those, at least 37 people were evacuated and three for sure lost their homes. Another employee’s home was seriously damaged, and an unofficial county could set the number of homes lost to 15, according to Christina Cramer, of county human resources who Tuesday morning updated supervisors.

County employees impacted include 22 who work for the Sheriff’s Office, 11 for county human services and seven for the probation department. The supervisors’ resolution sets the fire as a local emergency and helps the employees in various ways including helping them take time off of work. The last time the board took such action was in 1997 for the devastating wintertime floods.

UPDATE 10:20 a.m. CLEARLAKE RIVIERA

Residents of Clearlake Riviera, Riveria West and Riviera Heights now may return home, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday morning.

The mandatory evacuation was lifted as of 10 a.m., sheriff’s Lt. Steve Brooks said in a press release.

Also Highway 29 will reopen at noon from Highway 281, known as Kit’s Corner, to the junction of Highway 53 in Lower Lake. Only residents will be allowed in and they will need to provide proof of their addresses.

Brooks said that while the fire isn’t contained, the threat to that area, which had emerged earlier in the fire, has lessened.

UPDATE 7:00 a.m. VALLEY FIRE

Cal Fire officials early Tuesday said the Valley fire had expanded another 5,000 acres during the night to 67,000 acres, with containment now at 15 percent. Another day of predicted cooler-than-normal temperatures were expected to help with the effort, which now has grown to 2,362 firefighters, almost 1,000 more than Monday’s workforce.

UPDATE 6:55 a.m. LAKE COUNTY

Lake County sheriff’s deputies will begin escorting residents back to their homes at 10 a.m. this morning to pick up or care for animals that were left behind when they were forced to flee the Valley fire.

Residents must be able to complete their task in no more than 15 minutes, and come with all of the food or equipment they need, along with photo identification listing a residence address in the evacuation area. No escorts will be made for residents requesting medications, clothes or any other personal items.

Escorts will be provided in Kelseyville and Lower Lake between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Residents requesting to enter properties on the Kelseyville side of Cobb Mountain off of Bottle Rock Road, Highway 175, or in the Clearlake Riviera will meet at 9 a.m. in the dirt parking lot behind the football stadium at Kelseyville High School.

Residents requesting to enter properties south of Lower Lake, Hidden Valley Lake, Middletown, and Cobb will meet at 9 a.m. in the main parking lot of the Lower Lake High School. No escorts will be made to properties in the communities of Loch Lomond or Anderson Springs due to ongoing firefighting efforts.

For complete wildfire coverage go to: www.pressdemocrat.com/wildfire

Staff Writer Paul Payne contributed to this report.