Evacuation orders lifted for Lake County fires near Lower Lake

Two fires erupted in Lake County and a third in Napa County Tuesday just as crews were nearing full containment on the large Cold fire blaze east of Lake Berryessa.

The Lake County fires started within two minutes of each other just after 5:30 p.m. They burned about five miles apart in an area south of Anderson Marsh State Historical Park on the south end of Clear Lake. Evacuation orders were quickly issued for residents in the area but were lifted later in the evening.

The larger fire, off Kugelman Street near Highway 53, grew to 45 acres, spreading over private land and threatening dozens of homes and businesses in its path, said Cal Fire Capt. Emily Smith.

It jumped Highway 53 and was moving east toward Cache Creek before firefighters corralled its advance. It was about 70 percent contained late Tuesday and had burned at least one residential structure east of Highway 53.

The smaller blaze, at about 14 acres, burned near Seigler Canyon Road and Highway 29 before it was fully contained late Tuesday. One structure was damaged in the fire, Smith said.

Power was restored to about 9,000 people in Clearlake, Lower Lake and Hidden Valley by 10 p.m. It was cut after Pacific Gas & Electric shut down a high-power transmission line at the request Cal Fire.

As if that’s weren’t enough for Lake County, a magnitude 5.1 earthquake rattled near Nice. The U.S Geological Survey reported the quake struck at 7:57 p.m. Tuesday. Two small aftershocks of 2.7 and 3.0 could be felt about 30 minutes after the initial quake.

The Lake County Sheriff dispatch reported no damage or injuries. Residents and business owners in the region reported swaying light fixtures and scared pets, but no damage or injuries.

To the south, in Napa County, a third fire in the Knoxville area north of Lake Berryessa broke out Tuesday, growing to 36 acres. It was 35 percent contained and no structures were threatened, Smith said.

Firefighting efforts on that fire benefited from progress being made on the 5,731-acre Cold fire, which was 95 percent contained late Tuesday.

The progress allowed state fire officials to release equipment and crews to the Knoxville fire, as well as more pressing blazes in the state, including the 7,000-acre Pilot fire near Lake Arrowhead in the San Bernardino Mountains. It was 6 percent contained.