Firefighters make headway in destructive Weed blaze
Kevin Fagan - San Francisco Chronicle
Updated 9:44 am, Tuesday, September 16, 2014
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(09-16) 08:29 PDT WEED, SISKIYOU COUNTY -- A giant, wind-whipped fire that roared through the Siskiyou County town of Weed and forced at least 1,500 residents to evacuate was burning fiercely early Tuesday, but firefighters said they were making headway against the blaze.
By Tuesday morning, 370 acres had burned and more than 100 structures were damaged or destroyed, but firefighters had the blaze 20 percent contained, according to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection officials. Locals at the scene said the burned buildings included homes, businesses and a Roman Catholic church.
At the Roseburg Mill, the main employer in town of 3,000 people, firefighters tamped down stubborn flames in a pile of sawdust and debris.
"We got a pretty good grip on it last night, but with the wind kicking up like this, things could always happen," said Cal Fire spokeswoman Amy Head.
Firefighters used bulldozers and hand tools to cut lines around parts of the fire that were threatening homes, officials said.
The blaze, called the Boles Fire, broke out about 1:30 p.m. Monday in the dry grass just outside town. Fanned by gusting 40-mph winds, it jumped Highway 97 and took off with explosive speed, racing into the community as terrified residents fled.
The flames burned into town and engulfed buildings before firefighters had a chance to get equipment in place. The cause of the fire was under investigation.
Dale Anzo, 44, who has lived in Weed for most of his life, stayed at home with his family and used a garden hose to wet the roof as the fire approached. The blaze stopped three houses away.
"It's the most horrible thing I've ever seen to hit town," Anzo said. "It looks like a bomb went off in the middle of it. The Catholic church burned, the machines at the mill burned, the house of my neighbors burned. ... It's terrible."
Between 1,500 and 2,000 residents were forced to evacuate, including the entire towns of Weed, Carrick and Lake Shastina. The fire was headed toward Interstate 5 as the sun went down Monday, and firefighters were reportedly battling to save Angel Valley, a rural area at least half of which was said to have burned.
The Red Cross opened an evacuation center at the Siskiyou County Fairgrounds in Yreka. There were no reports of injuries or fatalities.
The Boles Fire is one of 12 major wildfires in the state, 11 of them in Northern California, with nearly 6,000 firefighters scrambling to beat back advancing flames.
More than 1,000 people were forced to flee the Courtney Fire near Oakhurst (Madera County), 14 miles south of Yosemite National Park. By Tuesday, it had burned 320 acres, had destroyed 33 homes and 28 outbuildings and was 20 percent contained. About 400 people were allowed to return home, Cal Fire said.
Meanwhile, a wildfire was devouring dry brush and timber along the south fork of the American River near Pollock Pines (El Dorado County) had grown to 11,570 acres and was only 5 percent contained. The fire forced the evacuation of more than 100 homes on the east side of Forbay Road between King of the Mountain Road and Pony Express Trail.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Firefighters-make-headway-in-destructive-Weed-5758830.phpRead my blog at http://eclecticarcania.blogspot.com/
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