Lake Berryessa nearly deserted for 4th of July due to County Fire
NAPA, Calif. (KGO) -- The smoke from the County Fire has put a real damper on what would otherwise be a busy and festive holiday week at Lake Berryessa. The 60,000-acre County Fire is just 5 percent contained.
"It's frustrating," said Chad Frazier, the owner of Berryessa Watersports at the Markley Cove Resort.
The marina at Markley Cove would normally be bustling with activity this holiday week, but it's nearly deserted, most of the boats still in their slips, a thick smog in the air.
MAP: A look at the 'County Fire' in Yolo County
For Frazier's family, owners of Berryessa Watersports for 55 years, a busy 4th is a must.
"We were hoping with 4th of July being on a Wednesday that this whole week would give us a bump, but obviously with the fire, it's not happening," he said.
Still, there were a few takers here, like two guys from Lafayette, who stuck with the plan to spend the holiday week at Berryessa.
"You can't get burned in the lake," said Mark Rolandeli, as he and a buddy prepared to board their rented jet skis. "We're up here to have fun, so we planning on having some fun."
In the meantime, firefighters are making progress, it appears, both in the air and on the ground, where dozers and hand crews spent the day cutting lines, trying to hold the line and take advantage of the relatively benign weather conditions.
As he drove his cigar boat on a nearly deserted Lake Berryessa, Sam Dumenigo told us, despite the smoke, it looks a lot better Monday than it did Sunday night, when he and his friends watched from a houseboat, a fireworks show on the ridge above, like none they'd seen before.
"It was probably five, six miles long, this firestream, with flares of 4 to 500 feet high, it was pretty spectacular," said Dumenigo.
Cal Fire officials say their goal is to have full containment of this fire by next Tuesday, July 10, 2018. So far, it is only 3 percent contained.
PHOTOS: County Fire burning near Lake Berryessa
EVACUATION ORDERS, ROAD CLOSURES:
Mandatory evacuations:
Residences served by Highway 128, between Monticello Dam and Pleasant Valley Road.
North of Highway 128
South of County Road 23
East of Berryessa Knoxville Road
Residences served by Highway 128, between Monticello Dam and Pleasant Valley Road
Evacuation Advisory:
North of Quail Canyon Road
South of Highway 128
East of the Blue Ridge mountains
West of Pleasant Valley Road
For questions regarding Yolo County evacuations or advisories, please dial 2-1-1 For questions regarding Solano County evacuations or advisories please dial (707) 398-8261
Evacuation center: Guinda Grange Hall in the Community of Guinda 16487 Forest Ave. Guinda, CA 95637
Road closures:
Northbound County Road 87 from Highway 128, Berryessa Knoxville Road, from the Pope Creek Bridge to the Napa/Lake County line, Eastbound Highway 128 at Markley Resort, Westbound Highway 128 at Pleasant Valley Road, Pleasant Valley Road, South from Highway 128 remains open to serve traffic into Solano County
The fire sent smoke across the Bay Area, as far west as Petaluma and as far south as San Francisco and Redwood City, according to the National Weather Service in San Francisco.
CAL FIRE map of the "County Fire"
