People find it difficult to describe the Valley Fire.
Comparisons to other destructive blazes fall short. Firefighters point out that it breaks all the rules, tearing out in any direction, no matter the wind. Between the moment the first call of smoke came in on Saturday afternoon and the murky daybreak on Sunday, it devoured 40,000 acres, injured four firefighters and killed at least one resident.
“This is the worst tragedy I’ve seen,” said Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin.
As of 9 a.m. on Tuesday, the Valley Fire has consumed 67,000 acres and at least 585 homes, along with other structures. Only rubble and blackened stone remained of the historic Hoberg’s Resort. Ashes marked the site of an apartment building in Middletown. More than 10,000 people had been displaced by a slew of mandatory evacuation orders.
But firefighters have been able to extend containment to 15 percent. And cool temperatures coupled with rising humidity, along with a chance of rain today and Wednesday, added up to a glimmer of hope that the beast may soon be tamed.
“This is a disaster — for now,” said Lake County Supervisor Rob Brown.
He pointed out that despite rumors to the contrary, much of the center of Cobb survived the blaze. In Middletown, the downtown area around Hardester’s, along with the high school, remain standing — contrary to early social media reports.
Yet the fire remains dangerous. Homes and businesses in Cobb, Middletown and Hidden Valley Lake are gone. Four firefighters suffered second degree burns on Saturday evening, when the blaze suddenly turned. Responders were unable to reach an elderly disabled woman before flames consumed her home. And many calls refer to missing people.
Still, on Monday crews from across the state swelled the numbers fighting the Valley incident. Firefighters struggled to blunt the fire near Loch Lomond. Others hacked out fire lines where they could.
While fewer than 200 men and women were available to attack the fire on Saturday, close to 1,500 attended to the line on Monday, along with 157 engines and 53 water tenders.
More are arriving every hour.
“Lake County is the top priority,” reported State Senator Mike McGuire.
Throughout the day fire crews complained in scanner reports of unauthorized people in the fire area. Some interfered with their patrols. Law enforcement officers meanwhile responded to several calls of vandalism or theft.
At least one national media outlet was reprimanded for transporting an evacuated resident back into the area.
Extensive mandatory evacuations remain in place, thanks in part to the unpredictable nature of the fire as well as to down power lines and other dangers. PG&E crews struggled to connect miles of toppled lines and bring in replacement poles.
Around the county, those in temporary shelters are becoming antsy, wondering when they can return home. This is particularly true of those evacuated from the Rivieras, an area still untouched by the fire.
“We were hoping to do repopulation in the Rivieras, but the winds came up and conditions became unpredictable,” Brown observed. “I know people are frustrated.”
Given the Valley Fire’s appetite for Lake County territory, however, authorities prefer to err on the side of caution.
“The biggest challenge is trying to get people home safely,” Martin said. “There are a lot of things beyond our control.”
