CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – Fire officials said Thursday morning that acreage didn’t grow overnight on either the Pawnee fire in Lake County or the County fire to the southeast, with slight gains in containment on both.
On Thursday the Pawnee fire northeast of Clearlake Oaks remained at 15,000 acres, with containment up to 92 percent, Cal Fire said.
At the same time, Cal FIre said the region’s biggest incident, the County fire in Yolo and Napa counties, remained at 86,000 acres, with containment up to 30 percent and 990 structures threatened, a decrease of several hundred since Wednesday night.
According to the latest map, 63 percent of the fire is in Yolo County, with the other 37 percent in Napa County.
Advances by firefighters led the Napa and Solano County Sheriff’s Offices to lift more evacuation advisories and road closures for the fire area.
In Napa County, advisories were lifted east of Capell Valley Road and North of State Highway 128, including the Berryessa Highlands, Pleasure Cove Resort, Markley Cove Resort and residences accessed by Steele Canyon Road.
In Solano County, the advisories were lifted for the areas north of Quail Canyon Road, south of State Highway 128, east of the Blue Ridge Mountains and west of Pleasants Valley Road.
Officials said the closure of State Highway 128 between Markley Cove Resort and Pleasants Valley Road is rescinded. Residents are urged to continue driving with caution as emergency personnel and equipment are still working in the area.
However, both Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol reported that Highway 16 – from the junction of Highway 20 in Colusa County to 0.8 miles east of Rumsey at Manzanita Avenue in Yolo County – remained closed due to the fire.
Burning conditions on the Pawnee fire, which began June 23, have continued to trend downwards, however, Cal Fire said there is a warming and drying trend forecast for Friday.
In the meantime, Cal Fire said resources on the incident – which include more than 1,200 personnel, 51 engines, 17 water tenders, four helicopters, 23 hand crews and 27 dozers – will continue with patrol, mop-up, and repair work throughout the day and night.
On the County fire, challenges with steep and inaccessible terrain continue, with the incident burning throughout the night with little recovery from the relative humidity. The weather
will become hotter and drier into the weekend and fire growth potential remains high, Cal Fire said.
Resources assigned to the County fire include 3,475 firefighters, 309 engines, 41 water tenders, 21 helicopters, 73 hand crews and 73 dozers, Cal Fire said.
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