KELSEYVILLE >> Fire crews stopped a wildland fire along Highway 29 outside of Kelseyville on Tuesday evening, but not before it had scorched 75 acres and given many residents a scare.
The Bottle Fire ignited around 4:40 p.m. in a flat stretch of dry grass bordered by rocky slopes near the intersection with Bottle Rock Road. Before it was extinguished, law enforcement officers were forced to close part of Highway 29 to all traffic and issue evacuation advisories.
“When I got there it was 2 acres and a moderate rate of growth,” said Joe Huggins, chief of the Kelseyville Fire Protection District. “The priority was to keep it off the slope. That didn’t happen.”
Wind gusts fueled the blaze as it approached high ground. Crews from Kelseyville and the Lakeport Fire Protection District had initially kept pace as it edged from 10 acres to a modest 15.
By 5:40, however, flames had advanced 40 acres and power lines were down.
“It outran everybody,” Huggins observed.
More support quickly arrived, as calls went out for everything from additional bulldozers to hand crews. Helicopter 104 joined the battle, with Copter 101 shortly behind. Aircraft were ordered in from Sonoma and Mendocino counties.
But firefighters on the ground soon found they were battling more than flames and August heat.
“The area where it burned was largely uninhabited — a lot of wilderness, a lot of rocky, rough terrain,” said Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin. “So that made some challenging situations.”
Bulldozers could not reach some areas and crews scrambled to block the fire’s advance in the rocks. Cal Fire planes and helicopters made dozens of runs over the area.
“The aircraft were a big help,” Huggins reported.
Progress was stopped before nightfall. Crews shifted to mop up in the evening and continued their work Wednesday.
An inmate firefighter with Cal Fire suffered minor injuries. No structures were damaged and there were no residents hurt. Highway 29 remained closed between Highway 175 and Kit’s Corner during the evening.
Advisory evacuation orders, which covered the same area, were lifted on Tuesday evening, as well.
The Bottle Fire began with a vehicle accident. A pickup truck rolled and tumbled off the road, igniting dry grass along the highway.
According to initial reports, the driver did not suffer major injuries.
In addition to crews from Kelseyville, Lakeport and Cal Fire, firefighters were on hand from Northshore Fire Protection District, Lake County Fire Protection District and South County.
