Napa County Wildfires: Some Evacuations Lifted

NAPA COUNTY, CA — Four days after wildfires forced them to flee their homes, some Napa County evacuees were permitted to return home Thursday evening as authorities lifted mandatory evacuations for areas including Silverado Country Club, Monticello Park, The Avenues and areas west of Silverado Trail, between Hardman Avenue and Highway 128.

The good news came after fire crews were able to finally make some progress in battling the blazes overnight, Napa County officials said Thursday. "The wind event predicted to blow through the night didn't materialize quite as predicted, and that allowed us to have more containment," Napa County Fire Chief Barry Biermann said at a briefing held earlier in the day.

"We're hoping that the weather continues to cooperate," Biermann said.

The largest of the wildfires, the Atlas Fire, has burned 43,762 acres and has destroyed more than 100 homes and businesses, including 13 in neighboring Solano County. It was 7-percent contained Thursday. There are several other wildfires that have collectively burned tens of thousands of acres in California's iconic wine country region.

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"It's the beginning of day four and we're beginning to contain this fire, that's the story of the day," Napa County Board of Supervisors chair Belia Ramos said. "We're in this together, you're well supported, we're going to get through this together."

For incident management purposes, Cal Fire has organized the seven devastating wildfires still burning throughout the North San Francisco Bay Area into the Southern LNU Complex and the Central LNU Complex.

The Southern LNU Complex fires, Atlas and Carneros Partrick, have collectively destroyed 181 structures, damaged 27 others and were still threatening 5,000 others in Napa and Solano counties, according to Cal Fire. Carneros Partrick fire, a 10,817-acre blaze that initially broke out late Sunday night off Partrick Road west of the city of Napa, was 3-percent contained Thursday.

The Tubbs Fire, which started Sunday night near Calistoga before weaving a destructive path into Sonoma County and Santa Rosa, has burned 34,770 acres and was 10-percent contained Thursday, according to Cal Fire.

Fire officials kept a close eye Thursday on Calistoga, Sonoma and Geyserville, Cal Fire Director Ken Pimlott said in a briefing. Trigger points for evacuations have been established, Pimlott said, urging residents to heed evacuation orders and advisories.

Calistoga Mayor Chris Canning said although his entire city was ordered to evacuate Wednesday afternoon because of approaching flames, fire crews kept them at bay and no damage has been reported within the city limits. Canning warned any residents trying to return to mandatory evacuation areas that they will be distracting from the firefighting effort.

"If you are not a first responder, you are not welcome," he said.

Additional resources continue to arrive from across the state and nation to assist on the fire lines, in the fire-devastated communities and at area shelters filled with more than 4,000 evacuees.

Some 39,000 structures were still being threatened Thursday by the deadly wildfires burning in Napa County and the North Bay since Sunday — two of which merged together overnight, according to Cal Fire. The Nuns Fire, which started Sunday night near state Highway 12 north of Glen Ellen in Sonoma County, merged with the Norrbom Fire east of Boyes Hot Springs.

Part of what Cal Fire is managing as the Central LNU Complex, the more powerful Nuns Fire was 3 percent contained Thursday evening at 17,498 acres.

As for the other Central LNU Complex fires, the Adobe Fire is a 7,555-acre blaze near Kenwood in Sonoma County that was 1-percent contained; the Pressley Fire is 1-percent contained at 473 acres east of Rohnert Park; the Pocket Fire has burned 8,340 acres north of Geyserville; and the deadly Tubbs Fire has grown to 34,270 acres in size.

Nineteen fatalities have been confirmed in the wildfires in Napa and Sonoma counties.

Two people — an elderly couple — died at the onset of the Atlas Fire in Napa County.

At least 17 people perished in the Tubbs Fire as it came racing into the Santa Rosa area in the early-morning hours of Monday. Ten of those victims were identified by Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano in a Thursday evening briefing.

Giordano noted that sheriff's investigators are still seeking to locate 400 missing people from 1,100 missing person reports received in the county. Many of those initially reported missing have been located as cellphone and internet service is restored in the wildfire-ravaged region, Giordano said.

Napa County sheriff's officials received 83 missing person reports, with the whereabouts of 50 of those people still undetermined as of Thursday.

Those able to reunite with someone previously reported missing are encouraged to inform their local authorities.

According to Cal Fire, mandatory Southern LNU Complex evacuations remained in effect Thursday evening for:

NAPA COUNTY

• Circle Oaks
• Buhman Road
• Wild Horse Valley Road
• SR 128 to Moskowite
• Berryessa Highlands

SOLANO COUNTY:

• Upper and Lower Green Valley

Road closures that took effect Thursday in Napa County included:

• The intersection of Atlas Peak Road and Westgate Drive, denying access to Old Soda Springs and Atlas Peak
• The intersection of Monticello Road and Vichy Avenue will remain closed, denying access to the Lake Berryessa area
• Wild Horse Valley Road will be closed at Coombsville Road, denying access to Wild Horse Valley

Napa County residents with evacuation and fire-related questions can call the Napa County public information line at 707-253-4501. Fire information is also available on the the county's website.

>> Click here for information from Cal Fire about precautions to take when given permission to re-enter an evacuation zone.

In Sonoma County, the following areas remained under mandatory evacuation Thursday from the Central LNU Complex:

Bennett Valley Mandatory Evacuations

• Bennett Ridge Road
• Sonoma Mountain Road
• Enterprise Road

Cloverdale Mandatory Evacuations

• Cloverdale KOA
• Palomino Road

Eldridge Mandatory Evacuations

• Sonoma Developmental Center

Geyserville Mandatory Evacuations

• Nutter Road
• Sellers Road
• River Road
• Fay Ranch Road
• Ridge Oaks Road
• Fox Ridge Road
• Vineyard Road
• Woodridge Road
• Deerpath Drive
• Ram Hill Road
• Rockmouth Road
• Colony Road
• Lakewood Lane
• Highway 128 - Every residence between 1922 Hwy 128 and the Russian River
• Vanoni Road to Gill Creek, all directions
• Highway 128 - East to River Rock Casino. South on 128 to Geysers Road up to Cal Pine.

Glen Ellen and Kenwood Mandatory Evacuations

• Arnold Drive at State hospital in between Madrone Road and Warm Springs Road
• West of Jack London State Park
• All of Glen Ellen
• Enterprise Road
• Wall Road - North of Trinity Road
• Cavedale Road

Knights Valley Mandatory Evacuations

• Porter Creek Road
• Petrified Forest Road
• Ida Clayton Road - from Highway 128 to the county line

Larkfield Mandatory Evacuations

• Faught Road - near Shiloh Regional Park
• Montebello Drive
• Foothill Ranch Road

Penngrove Area Mandatory Evacuations

• Roberts Road
• Lichau Road
• Pressley Road
• Sonoma Mountain Road

Santa Rosa Mandatory Evacuations

• Annadel Heights area, bordered north by Parktrail Drive and west by Summerfield Road
• All of Oakmont
• Montecito Heights neighborhood
• Cross Creek Road
• Sky Farm Neighborhood
• Saint Andrews Drive
• All residences north of Fountaingrove Parkway
• East of Fulton Rd from Guerneville Road to River Road
• Kaiser Permanente Hospital
• Sutter Hospital
• Sky Farm Drive
• Saint Andrews Drive
• Hopper Avenue Area West of Coffey Lane - Between Dennis Lane and Hopper Avenue to the north and south and Coffey Lane and Barnes Road to the east and west
• Rincon Valley – north of Montecito Blvd. from Brush Creek Road to eastern city limits at Calistoga Road

Sonoma Valley Mandatory Evacuations

• Eastern Sonoma Valley - Castle Road north of Lovall Valley Road, and 7th Street North
• Gehricke Road
• Mission Highland
• Norrbom Road
• North of East Napa Street - from 4th Street East to end of E. Napa Street
• Windsor Mandatory Evacuations
• Shiloh Ranch Estates

>>A list of Sonoma County areas under evacuation advisory is on the county's website.

RELATED: Northern California Wildfire Latest: Death Toll Climbs To 26; Fires Merge; 191,437 Acres Burned

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.

Photo: Compassion and heart is shown for a worried and scared resident attending a city of Napa fire briefing Oct. 11, 2017 at Browns Valley School. Napa police Sgt. Michael Hensley assisted the woman, even offering to go retrieve and bring her car so she did not have to walk. Other city officials also stepped in to comfort the crying woman. (Photo contributed by Al Francis/Napasonomaphotos.com)