Wildfire raging north of San Francisco threatens homes

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

LOWER LAKE, Calif. (AP) — Wildfires blazing in several Western states Sunday chewed up forests and threatened homes but were most numerous in Northern California where dozens are raging and setting off evacuations.

Wildfires are also burning in Washington and Oregon.

The biggest California wildfire — raging in the Lower Lake area north of San Francisco — spread overnight to cover even more drought-stricken ground, expanding more than 30 square miles in four or five hours, said California's Forestry and Fire Protection Director Ken Pimlott.

The fast-moving blaze had charred 71 square miles by Sunday, an area much bigger than San Francisco's 49 square miles.

FULL story at link. Video: http://launch.newsinc.com/share.html?trackingGroup=92351&siteSection=bigstory_hom_non_non_dynamic_wire_ap&videoId=29474448



Firefighters spray a hose at a fire along Morgan Valley Road near Lower Lake, Calif., Friday, July 31, 2015. A series of wildfires were intensified by dry vegetation, triple-digit temperatures and gusting winds. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/7297ac911e5b45f89dcea200bad8383e/wildfire-raging-north-san-francisco-threatens-homes

[shenmue]

1. Yipes

Everybody be careful.

[Sunlei]

2. 71 square miles! I guess Cals future is no more trees and more desert brush land.

How is Sequoia national park doing with the drought and dry winds? when that 'park forest' goes, we'll know its over for California.

[NV Whino]

3. These headlines are misleading (what else is new?)

Yes, this is north of San Fransisco, but it is 2 hours north. It is in a heavily brushed, natural area. Yes, there are homes at risk, but those homes have been built in rural, high-risk, fire areas.

I don't mean to diminish the disaster, but like the Oakland hills fire several years ago. These people built where they shouldn't have.

Note: I also am in a high-risk fire area, much closer to these fire than San Frassico is.

[XemaSab]

4. Everything north of Sonoma = ????? for people not up here

[NV Whino]

5. True

And nobody knows where Redding is. Or even what, or if, it is.

[XemaSab]

6. .

[Mrs. Overall]

7. My great, great, great grandparents' homestead just burned this afternoon in this fire...

Built in the 1860s. So depressing.

My thoughts go out to all of the families whose lives are being impacted by this devastating fire.

[Comrade Grumpy]

8. We've been watching giant smoke clouds from the Rocky fire for the last three days.

Huge columns coming up behind Mt. St. Helena (the fire's northeast of there, I'm on the other side). This is about 30 or 40 miles from where I live. We've had several other fires in the area in the past few days, too, including a fire in the Laguna de Santa Rosa where I could see the flames from my backyard. Not a comfortable feeling. At least that fire is out.