CLOVERDALE, Calif. – Firefighters are continuing to monitor a fire that broke out in a Sonoma County railroad tunnel earlier this week.
The Cloverdale Fire Protection District and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) responded to a fire involving an abandoned railroad tunnel shortly after 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
The tunnel is located along the Russian River, north of Cloverdale, near the Sonoma-Mendocino county line.
Firefighters found a fire involving the wood structure supporting the tunnel and were able to extinguish the fire on the southern end of the tunnel structure. However, officials reported that firefighters were unable to enter the tunnel to fully extinguish the fire due to the damaged wood structure and potential of collapse.
The firefighters reportedly observed wood and other material falling from the tunnel’s roof and walls. Cal Fire said the wood structure appears to be mainly untreated redwood timbers.
The owner of the tunnel, the Northwestern Pacific Railroad Co., was notified of the fire. Northwestern personnel have remained at the tunnel since Wednesday night, summoning water tenders and bulldozers to combat the fire, and sealing the ends of the tunnel, using bulldozers to pile dire, according to Cal Fire's report.
Cal Fire said smoke may remain visible to passing motorists on Highway 101 and residents of the area. The tunnel structure is expected to continue to burn for at least a week until it is smothered by the lack of fresh air.
The tunnel has not been used since railroad services stopped more than 10 years ago, Cal Fire said. The tunnel is 1,800 feet long and was originally built in 1898. It was refurbished in 1969.
Cal Fire said firefighters are ready to respond if the fire spreads to the surrounding vegetation.
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