California Fires Lay Waste to 140,000 Acres and Rage On
- 7 years ago
California Fires Lay Waste to 140,000 Acres and Rage On
The winds whipping the flames in the area north of San Francisco Bay came from the north,
and thousands of firefighters labored to build fire breaks on the southern flanks of the blazes to hold them back from cities like Santa Rosa, which has already suffered heavy damage, Napa, Sonoma, Calistoga and Geyserville.
NAPA, Calif. — With roads still blocked by the police
and fires still raging across broad swaths of Northern California, Matt Lenzi hiked through smoke-choked vineyards and waded the Napa River to reach the home his father lived in for 53 years.
“Even the barbecue melted, and that’s built to take heat.”
The fires ravaging California’s wine country since Sunday night — part of an outbreak of blazes stretching almost the entire length of the state — continued to burn
out of control on Wednesday, as the toll rose to at least 21 people confirmed dead, hundreds hospitalized, and thousands of buildings destroyed or damaged.
Supported by aircraft dropping water and fire retardant — ranging from helicopters to a Boeing 747 tanker — fire crews used bulldozers, chain saws
and shovels to clear trees and brush, hoping to create fire breaks and starve the blazes of fuel.
The two biggest and most destructive fires had consumed more than 70,000 acres in Napa
and Sonoma Counties by Wednesday morning, up from 52,000 on Tuesday afternoon, according to Cal Fire, the state’s firefighting agency.
The winds whipping the flames in the area north of San Francisco Bay came from the north,
and thousands of firefighters labored to build fire breaks on the southern flanks of the blazes to hold them back from cities like Santa Rosa, which has already suffered heavy damage, Napa, Sonoma, Calistoga and Geyserville.
NAPA, Calif. — With roads still blocked by the police
and fires still raging across broad swaths of Northern California, Matt Lenzi hiked through smoke-choked vineyards and waded the Napa River to reach the home his father lived in for 53 years.
“Even the barbecue melted, and that’s built to take heat.”
The fires ravaging California’s wine country since Sunday night — part of an outbreak of blazes stretching almost the entire length of the state — continued to burn
out of control on Wednesday, as the toll rose to at least 21 people confirmed dead, hundreds hospitalized, and thousands of buildings destroyed or damaged.
Supported by aircraft dropping water and fire retardant — ranging from helicopters to a Boeing 747 tanker — fire crews used bulldozers, chain saws
and shovels to clear trees and brush, hoping to create fire breaks and starve the blazes of fuel.
The two biggest and most destructive fires had consumed more than 70,000 acres in Napa
and Sonoma Counties by Wednesday morning, up from 52,000 on Tuesday afternoon, according to Cal Fire, the state’s firefighting agency.