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  • Environment
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Rocky Fire Wednesday: Containment Grows; 43 Homes, 53 Outbuildings Burned

Wednesday, August 5, 2015 | Sacramento, CA
Josh Edelson / AP

A plume of smoke rises above a hillside as the Rocky Fire burns near Clearlake, Calif., on Monday, Aug. 3, 2015. The fire has charred more than 65,000 acres and destroyed at least 24 residences.

Josh Edelson / AP

Rocky Fire Crosses Hwy 20; More Evacuations Ordered

  • Cal Fire Rocky Fire Incident Report
  • Cal Fire Updates Facebook Page
  • YubaNet Rocky Fire Coverage

6:50 p.m. - Cal Fire says containment on the Rocky Fire is up to 30 percent as of Wednesday afternoon. The burn area also grew slightly, to 69,600 acres.

An updated damage report show 43 residences and 53 outbuildings burned.

Firefighters continue to work aggressively to build control lines and sustain perimeter control. Terrain is steep and rugged with limited access. Hotter drier conditions are expected to return during the day increasing the potential for fire activity throughout the fire area.

Structure loss assessment numbers may rise as damage assessment teams are able to access the previously burned areas. 

-Capital Public Radio staff

This just in - #RockyFire is now 69,600 acres & 30% contained. Good progress made today.

— CAL FIRE PIO Berlant (@CALFIRE_PIO) August 6, 2015

Excellent news! Thank you! RT @CALFIRE_PIO: This just in - #RockyFire is now 69,600 acres & 30% contained. Good progress made today.

— Lake County OES (@LAKECOUNTYOES) August 6, 2015

11:15 a.m. - Firefighters say they're making progress on the Rocky Fire burning near Clear Lake thanks in part to a little rain yesterday. The blaze continues to spread, now covering 68,300 acres, with 39 homes and 52 outbuildings destroyed. Containment stands at 20 percent.

Videos: Watch Very Large Air Tankers Drop Retardant On The Rocky Fire In CA. http://t.co/wae87ELVBU #vlat #air #tankers #rockyfire #wildfire

— CODE 20 (@CODE20News) August 5, 2015

Our OES engine working the #RockyFire pic.twitter.com/PQXr4ElK9Q

— JoAnne (@jojobean2021) August 5, 2015

A satellite story of smoke & stratus in NorCal. #cawx #wildfires pic.twitter.com/Fmv5pCGZCj

— NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) August 5, 2015

 


7:09 a.m. - Favorable weather in the last 24 hours has allowed Cal Fire to reinforce the control lines in the northwestern corner of the burned area, near the Spring Valley and Double Eagle developments. 

 

Rocky Fire, California http://t.co/ghBYkx6Dgz #NASA pic.twitter.com/JQtNucMycn

— NASA Earth (@NASA_EO) August 5, 2015

Battalion Chief Rick Frawley is a spokesman for Cal Fire. 

"It's predominantly hilly terrain that has difficult access points. We use dozer operations to affect creating fire breaks between the burned and the unburned areas of the incident perimeter," says Frawley.

But the terrain is still posing a challenge.

"Essentially we've drawn a box around the incident, and we're painting in the corners, so to speak."


6:46 a.m. - Firefighters say they're making progress on the Rocky Fire burning near Clear Lake thanks in part to a little rain yesterday. Containment is now at 20 percent.

About 3,500 firefighters continue to battle the blaze, including Jeff Ohs. He's a battalion chief for the Long Beach Fire Department. Ohs told the California Report, part of the issue is the reach of the fire - it's eaten up 67,000 acres.

"There are so many fires and there are so many people spread out all over the place that we don't have the ability to put as many people on this particular fire that we would like to," explains Ohs. "And that goes for every fire in the state. The resources are at a draw down. The state's in a higher preparedness level than it normally is. We're not at a breaking point but we're definitely at a stretching point."

Cal Fire says full containment on the Rocky Fire is expected by Monday.

#RockyFire [update] east of Lower Lake (Lake, Yolo & Colusa Co.) is now 68,300 acres & 20% contained. http://t.co/Vc6FheJxym

— CAL FIRE (@CAL_FIRE) August 5, 2015

Struggle to contain 20 wildfires across California as 13,000 people evacuated http://t.co/vPYVraBJSb #RockyFire pic.twitter.com/MDMh35dN9a

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 4, 2015

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    More about wildfire

  • Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

    California Wildfires: Latest Updates

    CapRadio provides the latest information and updates on wildfires hitting the state, and resources for listeners to help prepare, follow and respond to fire.

    Related Stories

  • Cal Fire Updates Facebook

    Rocky Fire Updates: Containment Reaches 85 Percent

    Sunday, August 9, 2015
    UPDATE: 6:30 p.m. Sunday - Cal Fire says containment of the Rocky Fire has reached 85 percent, with acreage burned holding at 69,636. All remaining evacuations have been lifted.
  • Jeff Chiu / AP

    Rocky Fire Update And Realignment's Effect On Firefighting

    Wednesday, August 5, 2015
    The Rocky Fire outside Clearlake has grown to more than 67,000 acres but a change in weather has helped firefighters increase their containment of the blaze to 20 percent. NPR reporter Kirk Siegler is on the scene and joins us with an update.
  • Cal Fire Updates Facebook

    Rocky Fire Containment Aided By Weather

    Tuesday, August 4, 2015
    UPDATE: 11:30 p.m. - Cal Fire says the Rocky Fire has grown slightly, to 67,000 acres, with containment moving to 20 percent as of late Tuesday. Drier conditions are expected Wednesday, which could increase the fire's extreme behavior.
  • Cal Fire PIO Berlant / Twitter

    Lake County Residents Express Concern As Rocky Fire Explodes In Size

    Monday, August 3, 2015
    The Rocky Fire started on Wednesday, but tripled in size over the weekend to about 84 square miles. The Rocky Fire is only five percent contained.
  • Jeff Chiu / AP

    Rocky Fire Progresses, Containment At 5 Percent

    Friday, July 31, 2015
    UPDATED 6:23 p.m. - Officials say the Rock Fire burning in Lake County continues to progress. The blaze has scorched 18,000 acres and is 5 percent contained. Mandatory evacuations are in place in some areas.
  • Cal Fire PIO Berlant / Twitter

    Rocky Fire In Lake County Quickly Grows To 3,000 Acres; Evacuations Ordered

    Wednesday, July 29, 2015
    The Rocky Fire in Lake County grew quickly Wednesday afternoon and evening, spreading to 3,000 acres, with zero percent containment. Fire officials say several outbuildings have been destroyed, and evacuation orders have been issued.

 wildfireRocky Fire

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