Point Fire: 1,200-acre wildfire in Sonoma Co. is 40% contained, CAL FIRE says

ByLena Howland, Suzanne Phan KGO logo
Tuesday, June 18, 2024
1,200-acre Point Fire in Sonoma Co. is 40% contained, CAL FIRE says
CAL FIRE says that the Point Fire burning in Sonoma County is now 40 percent contained, which is up from 20 percent Monday, and has only grown by 100 acres in the last 24 hours.

SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- The Point Fire burning in Sonoma County has grown Tuesday morning to just over 1,200 acres, which is only about 100 acres more than Monday.

It's now 40 percent contained, double from Monday night.

Cal Fire officials say the increase in acreage is mainly due to better mapping.

They say improved conditions and tamer winds on Monday helped them get a handle on the fire.

MAP: Track wildfires across California

The Point Fire has come dangerously close to animals and structures at the Raymond Burr Vineyards, burning part of their property.

"Thanks to the firefighters on the property here last night, I think they are the reason why we are still here and things are still standing," Taylor Brinkman, a Raymond Burr Vineyards employee said.

The vineyard is one of more than 400 homes and businesses put under evacuation orders on Father's Day, as the point fire spread.

In two days, the flames have destroyed two homes and a number of other structures.

The effort to contain the fire continues.

"Generally, it's just that hard work of getting out there, those firefighters finding those hot spots along the edge and then as they get that, working further in and doing what we call building depth or basically just working towards the center of the fire," Robert Foxworthy, a Cal Fire spokesperson said.

VIDEO: How climate is impacting California's fire season, and a solution involving plants

As wildfires continue to burn, scientists throughout California are looking into the connections between these events and climate change.

Flare-ups with hot spots are keeping firefighters busy, which is why officials say it's not safe to lift evacuation orders just yet.

"The only reason to keep the public out is safety," Foxworthy said. "I can tell you that we are working to get folks back into their homes as quick as possible."

Meanwhile, another massive fire is burning further north in Colusa County.

The Sites Fire exploded to 10,000 acres overnight, but Cal Fire doesn't plan to pull resources out of Sonoma County.

"Even with new fires occurring, we won't move resources off or send resources to another incident that could cause issue at this current incident so we keep as many resources as we need," Foxworthy said.

RELATED: Sonoma Co. homeowners describe how firefighters saved homes from Point Fire

Cal Fire says the goal of the day on Tuesday is to reinforce containment lines.

They will also be conducting heavy mop-up operations.

Parts of the Bay Area are under an air quality advisory through at least Wednesday due to smoke from the Point Fire.

RELATED: Air quality advisory issued through Wednesday in Bay Area

While that's downgraded from the "Spare The Air" alert Monday, people in Sonoma, Napa and Solano counties should still consider limiting time outside, especially people who have breathing problems.

Right now, there are 26 fires burning in California as the weather begins to warm up.

Fifteen of those started over the weekend, and have already burned more than 20,000 acres.

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