Evacuation Warning Area Expanded For Woodward Fire In Marin

MARIN COUNTY, CA — A wildfire in the Point Reyes National Seashore continued to spread Friday, prompting authorities to expand the evacuation warning area in coastal Marin County.

UPDATE: Woodward Fire: 2,259 Acres Burned, 5% Contained In Marin County

As of 3:30 p.m. Friday, the blaze, called the Woodward Fire, had burned 2,259 acres of dense vegetation and was 0 percent contained, according to the Marin County Fire Department. No injuries have been reported and no structures have been damaged. Around 1,620 structures were threatened.

An evacuation warning continued to be in effect for people living and visiting west of Shoreline Highway, also known as state Route 1, between Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Olema south to Bolinas.

On Friday, the Marin County Sheriff's Office expanded the evacuation warning area to include the area west of Highway 1 and Sir Francis Drake to the Point Reyes Lighthouse, as well as Sir Francis Drake to the Bay Area Ridge Trail, continuing to the Bolinas Ridge Fire Road and the McCurdy Trail. This includes the communities of Inverness, Inverness Park, Olema and Sea Haven.

"An evacuation warning gives you time to prepare," sheriff's officials said. "Please prepare your home, prepare a go-bag, charge your electronic devices, and prepare your family and pets to leave immediately in the event of an evacuation order."

Authorities urged West Marin residents and visitors to stay off roadways. Point Reyes National Seashore west of Highway 1 was closed to all visitors, according to the Sheriff's Office.

"We ask that coastal traffic be limited to local traffic only," officials said. "There are very few evacuation routes from West Marin and there are multiple fire resources utilizing the roadways. It is imperative that we leave the roadways open in the event of an evacuation order."

The fire, which was sparked by lightning, broke out shortly before 2:30 p.m. Tuesday just south of the Woodward Trail, a few miles west of the Bear Valley Visitor Center in Olema and about a mile inland from Limantour Beach.

Air support arrived Thursday afternoon to help fight the flames.

"We were able to get some support. Hopefully, we'll get some more support coming in today," Bernard Spielman, incident commander of Point Reyes National Seashore said during Friday's news briefing. "The fire was very active overnight, continuing to move north and west and south."

A total of 122 firefighting personnel were assigned to the fire Friday morning, including 26 overhead, 15 engines, three hand crews, one helicopter and a water tender, according to Marin County Fire. By Friday afternoon, multiple helicopters, air attack, tankers and super scoopers assisted in the firefight.

"We have been fighting this fire since it started," Marin County Fire Chief Jason Weber said during Friday's news briefing.

"We remain in aggressive attack — direct as we can be. We're starting to get additional resources, which is good."

The North Bay Incident Management Team was managing the fire, but the National Park Service asked for help from a specialized federal incident management team, according to the county. The Northern Rockies Team 2, a Type 1 national incident management team, was expected to arrive this weekend.

Also see:

• CA Fires Latest: 5 Dead, Over 770,000 Acres Burned
• Wildfire Smoke Prompts Health Advisory In Marin County
• Air Support Arrives To Help Fight Woodward Fire In Marin County
• Woodward Fire Burns 1,100 Acres In Point Reyes National Seashore
• Woodward Fire Prompts Evacuation Warning In West Marin