Wildfires in California Send Residents in Wine Country Fleeing

Thousands of residents have left their homes in California recently as the wildfire continues to grow.

However, a Glass Fire sparked early on Sunday morning around 4 a.m. PT. The Glass Fire sparked in Napa Country and had already burned more than 11,000 acres.

“The Glass fire has tripled in size since it began on Sunday, burning 36,236 acres and having 0% containment,” Cal Fire Division Chief Ben Nichols said at a Monday evening press conference. 

Residents in Napa countries and Sonoma have been ordered to evacuate their homes, and a local hospital in the area has recorded that at least 21 people have been treated for burns.

“Flames tore through vineyards and structures near St. Helena, roaring over hills and jumping across both the Silverado Trail and the Lodi River, despite fire crews efforts to contain it”, according to CNN affiliate KPIX.

“There are more than 8,100 wildfires in the state this year, and firefighters continue to fight at least 25 major blazes,” Cal Fire said in a news release Sunday.

“Since August 15, when California’s fire activity elevated, there have been 26 fatalities and over 7,000 structures destroyed,” the release said.

Among those ordered to vacate the fire was Jan Zakin, who lives in the evacuation zone on North Crystal Springs Road, CNN affiliate KGO.

Zakin told the affiliate that she had to evacuate as flames surrounded her home.

“We woke up in the middle of the night and saw flames,” Zakin told KGO. “I was in my underwear. There was a car on fire blocking access out. My dog ran away; I still haven’t found her. We left with nothing, just literally with nothing. We’re so lucky to be alive.”

“Her dog was found hours later, badly burned, and was treated by a vet,” KGO reported.

Another evacuee told KGO that the fires and evacuations are becoming an unwelcome part of life.

“It gets tiring, it’s becoming a lifestyle,” Magaly Otero, who was forced to evacuate due to the LNU Complex fire weeks ago, told the affiliate. “It’s a beautiful place but it’s not right.”

In Shasta County, the Zogg Fire had burned about 15,000 acres by Monday morning after increasing in size overnight, prompting mandatory evacuations in several areas.

The National Weather Service has put much of California under a Red Flag Warning through Monday. 

Cal Fire official Shane Lauderdale said Monday that they are “very, very happy” because “fire activity was minimal” in that area, and “everything stayed within the control lines” through the latest wind event.

More than 3 million acres burned in wildfires this year in California is 26 times higher than the acres burned in 2019 for the same period, according to Cal Fire.