- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Valley fire grows thousands more acres, officials confirm fatality
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Valley fire has made another run on acreage, with authorities also confirming on Monday that the fire has claimed its first human life.
Cal Fire said that the fire – burning since Saturday afternoon across the south county, and into Napa and Sonoma counties – had reached 61,000 acres by Monday, with 5 percent containment.
Thousands of county residents remain under evacuation due to the fire, and Cal Fire said approximately 9,000 structures are threatened.
Cal Fire also reported that several hundred structures have been destroyed, including 400 homes.
Five injuries also have been reported, according to Cal Fire.
Monday also brought with it the confirmation from the Lake County Sheriff's Office that an elderly, disabled woman unable to evacuate from her home had died in the fire.
Lt. Steve Brooks said the sheriff's Central Dispatch had received the first report of the Valley fire at approximately 1:22 p.m. on Saturday. Cal Fire asked for the sheriff's office to start emergency evacuates at exactly 1:50 p.m., and deputies immediately responded to begin helping people from their homes.
At that time, the sheriff’s dispatch center started to become flooded with calls reporting the fire, and citizens asking for assistance with evacuations. Brooks said those calls also included family members who were requesting law enforcement to check on relatives believed to be in the fire area.
He said both fire and law enforcement first responders reported to numerous requests for evacuation assistance in the Cobb and Loch Lomond areas. Hundreds of homes were evacuated during the first few hours.
A phone call for a request to assist an elderly, disabled female at a residence on Hot Springs Road came into Central Dispatch at 7:12 p.m. Saturday. Brooks said that just before 7:30 p.m. officers and deputies responded to the area, but were unable to reach the subdivision as it had already been engulfed by flames.
He said the woman was apparently unable to get out of the home on her own and responders couldn't make it to her home before the fire engulfed the structure.
After the fire subsided enough for crews to respond, personnel arrived at the burned down residence on Hot Springs Road to find the remains of a deceased person, he said.
The woman's identity is being withheld until positive identification and next of kin notification can be made.
“The sheriff’s office and all first responders express their condolences to those who have been affected by this disaster,” Brooks said. “We are hopeful that the fire does not claim any more lives.”
On Monday Assemblyman Bill Dodd (D-Napa), whose district includes Lake County, thanked first responders and concerned citizens for helping with the response.
“Our region has been particularly impacted by wildfires this season, and the recent Valley fire is the worst in our recent history,” he said.
California Highway Patrol Officer Kory Reynolds told Lake County News that closures of Highway 29 in and around the fire area remain in effect for the general public, including evacuees.
Reynolds said that Highway 29 from Live Oak Drive in Kelseyville to Lower Lake is closed, as is Highway 29 from the Highway 53 intersection in Lower Lake to Tubbs Lane in Napa County. These closures are being enforced and Reynolds said people will not be let through.
Other road closures resulting from the fire include Highway 29 at Bottle Rock Road, Highway 29 at Highway 175 in Kelseyville, Highway 29 at Red Hills Road, Highway 29 at Highway 281, Butts Canyon Road at Aetna Springs Road.
Mandatory evacuations remaining in effect cover the entire communities of Cobb, Hidden Valley Lake, Loch Lomond, Middletown and Seigler Canyon, Clear Lake Riviera and Riviera West; the intersection of Highway 29 to Highway 281; north on Highway 281 to the intersection of Soda Bay Road and Riviera West Drive; all roads off of Soda Bay Road south of the intersection of Riviera West Drive; Bottle Rock Road, High Valley Road, Highway 175/Cobb, Point Lakeview Road to Highway 281;
Highway 29/Highway 53 in Lower Lake to Highway 29 at Tubbs Lane in Calistoga in Napa County; Butts Canyon Road to the Napa County line, including Berryessa Estates; and Butts Canyon Road to Pope Valley, according to Cal Fire.
Advisory evacuations also are in effect for Soda Bay Road and Riviera West Drive, the Riviera West subdivision, Pine Flat Road (addresses 5000 and above), Geysers Road out of Healdsburg (addresses 6000 and above) and Geysers Road out of Geysers Road (addresses 9400 and above), Cal Fire said.
The Lake County Air Quality Management District reported Monday afternoon that air quality – which has been heavily impacted by smoke from the fire was improving across the county.
The report said that air quality levels in Lake County are “good” in most areas, compared to the “unhealthy” and “hazardous” levels on Sunday.
However, the district urged residents to be aware of rapidly changing conditions that could cause conditions to suddenly worsen.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.