All Santa Rosa evacuation orders downgraded as Glass fire reaches 58% containment

Evacuation zones

Authorities have downgraded all remaining evacuation orders in the Santa Rosa city limits to warnings, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department.

Residents may now return home to the following evacuation zones: Calistoga North, Calistoga South / Skyhawk, Melita, Pythian, Oakmont South, Oakmont North and Stonebridge.

View a map of current evacuation zones here.

In unincorporated parts of Sonoma County, authorities are also allowing residents to return to some areas along Highway 12 and Calistoga Road, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

Orders have been downgraded for portions of the following evacuation zones: 2Q1, 3G2, 3G3 and 6B1.

View a map of current evacuation zones here.

Adobe Canyon Road will remain under an evacuation order for all addresses past 1364 Adobe Canyon Road. Calistoga Road remains closed from Harville Road to Alpine Road.

Glass fire containment and damage

Firefighters gained more ground on the Glass fire overnight, increasing containment to 58% and limiting growth to just 150 acres, to a total of 67,200 acres, Cal Fire reported Wednesday morning.

Crews reached 50% containment on Tuesday, and fire officials expect to establish control lines around the entire wildfire burning in Napa and Sonoma counties by Oct. 20, Cal Fire said.

Cooler temperatures overnight and into Wednesday have helped fire crews slow the spread of the flames, said Cal Fire spokesperson Dave Lauchner.

“The weather conditions are definitely getting more favorable, the marine layer is pushing in a little bit more,” Lauchner said.

The tally of homes destroyed in the fire ticked up slightly to 327 single- and multi-family homes in Sonoma County and 302 homes in Napa County. Those numbers are expected to continue rising, as only about 65% of the blaze had been assessed for property damage as of Tuesday afternoon, Cal Fire said.

A damage map released Saturday by the city of Santa Rosa showed only 30 destroyed buildings, mostly homes, indicating that the majority of the damage in Sonoma County was outside city limits.

Local officials will hold a virtual town hall meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday to share information about Glass fire recovery and reentry. The town hall can be viewed at www.facebook.com/CountyofSonoma.

Glass fire activity

The Glass fire’s northern front in Napa County remains the most active part of the blaze. That includes along Highway 29 near Mount St. Helena, a rural area where steep, heavily wooded terrain complicates firefighting.

“That’s our main focus and fire activity right now,” said Lauchner. “Everything else has pretty much been knocked down, and we’re in the mop of phase.”

In Sonoma County, firefighters are clearing the Adobe Canyon Road area north of Kenwood, where flames from the Glass fire spilled over to the south side of the canyon at the onset of the blaze.

Lauchner said crews continue working to make the area safe for utility workers who need to make necessary repairs to the road and power poles before residents are let back in.

Weather and air quality

A storm approaching the North Bay from the Gulf of Alaska is driving cooler weather and may bring light rain over the region sometime this weekend.

National Weather Service meteorologist Steve Anderson said there’s a roughly 30% chance of about a quarter-inch of rain in Sonoma and Napa counties.

“Unfortunately, the computer models have been trending drier for the past two model runs,” he said. “There’s a chance (the North Bay) will get some measurable rain, but it won’t be a whole lot.”

Fire officials have said they’d welcome the rain but have made clear that recent forecasts don’t signal a “fire season-ending event.”

Temperatures in Sonoma and Napa counties will reach highs in the upper 70s Wednesday, Anderson said. Cooler and more humid conditions will continue through the week as a marine layer moves in from the coast, potentially aiding firefighting efforts.

By Sunday, temperatures should return to normal seasonal highs in the 80s, Anderson said.

Air quality regulators on Tuesday extended a Spare the Air Alert for most of the Bay Area through Thursday, meaning unhealthy air conditions are expected to persist until then.

While the air quality is improving in some areas, the district expects the haze will linger in parts North Bay due to the Glass fire and other massive wildfires burning in Northern California.

You can reach Staff Writer Ethan Varian at ethan.varian@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5412. On Twitter @ethanvarian