CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Firefighters completely contained the Boyles fire on Wednesday afternoon.

“Lake County Fire’s command is over now that it is 100% contained,” wrote Lake County Fire Marshal Autumn Lancaster in a text message to Lake County News.

The city of Clearlake started repopulation at 7 p.m. Wednesday for “habitable dwellings” in the fire area, said City Manager Alan Flora.

The repopulation started at 18th Avenue and continued north.

The Clearlake Police Department said the area south of 18th Avenue and north of Seventh Avenue, between Boyles Avenue and Irving Avenue, is still under mandatory evacuation orders.

Flora stressed that residents should not access fire-damaged properties until the Department of Toxic Substance Control comes to help remove hazardous wastes and make sure it’s safe.

“It could be dangerous now,” Flora said. There’s no final date to when that will take place but, “we’re trying to get them in this week.”

The fire started Sunday afternoon at around 2 pm in the area of Boyles Avenue and Dam Road, and has burned 81.2 acres.

As of Wednesday evening, the fire is confirmed to have destroyed 35 homes, 32 garages and outbuildings, and 79 vehicles, Flora said. Another three homes and four garages and outbuildings were damaged.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by Lake County Fire and Clear Lake Police Department with assistance from Cal Fire, according to Lancaster. “No arrests have been made in correlation to the cause of a fire.”

Woodland Community School and Obsidian Middle School were the focus of fire operations on Wednesday, Lancaster said.

“None of the structures were burned, but the vegetation around it,” she said, adding they were “just making sure all those areas were completely mopped up and safe.”

Despite not losing any buildings, schools affected by the fire reported serious smoke damage and will remain closed until thorough cleanup is completed.

West Coast Emergency Restoration has been hired to do the cleaning at Obsidian Middle School, Blue Heron and Lewis schools since Tuesday, said Becky Salato, superintendent of Konocti Unified School District.

“If they get it finished tomorrow, then we may be able to reopen Friday,” Salato said on Wednesday.

Salato said a total of 700 to 720 students from the three schools are out of school now.

The biggest concern is “for our kids and our families that lost their homes,” said Salato. “Not only the kids that are directly affected with losing their homes, just the trauma of a fire really brings out a lot of emotional stuff.”

Salato said that schools will have counselors on campus and are organizing support for students and their families.

“A shout out to our community just in general. Our first responders are just amazing,” Salato said.

Woodland Community College had its insurer examine the quality of the air inside the school buildings and it was recommended to do deep cleaning and replace filters in the buildings, according to Korinda Ebenhack, Dean of Woodland Community College's Lake County Campus.

The school will remain closed for the rest of the week. “My estimation is that we probably will be reopened on Monday,” said Ebenhack.

Some 1,000 students are having online classes and about 50 on staff are working online with the students including student services and instructors, she said.

Ebenhack said one person from the staff went back to campus on Monday under supervision of the fire officials to bring out laptops for colleagues who evacuated without their computers so that they could work remotely.

“We're just so thankful people were on it, and we've had such a great response from the community, you know, people reaching out and checking on us,” said Ebenhack.

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