Approximately 50 residents affected by the fast moving Pawnee fire received updates regarding fire behavior, CAL Fire and local departments’ ongoing efforts to save homes and property, as well as what direction the fire was headed, amidst other pertinent information during a community meeting Monday evening at the Clearlake Oaks Moose Lodge.
CAL Fire Incident Management 3 Operations Chief Geoff Belyea said Sunday and Monday crews had made really good progress along the southern end of the fire which was originally a spot fire on the south end of Spring Valley.
Belyea said crews had buttoned up the southern end and working to finish putting in control lines on the northern end right along Long Valley Road in order to fortify the community there.
He said along the western edge of the fire crews were making good progress with bulldozers, hand crews and engine companies laying hose up along the western edge of the fire.
In regards to Chalk Mountain, there was an island of unburnt fuel that was being consumed, consuming all the vegetation and kicking up a lot of smoke during the day.
He said fire fighters would put in some control lines along the Eastern end of the community which would help fortify the community of Spring Valley as well.
The main push of the fire as of Monday night was away from Spring Valley and toward the Walker Ridge area. Additionally, crews, bulldozers and fire engines were said to have been actively working in the Double Eagle Ranch area.
Beylea added that crews did experience some growth on the north of the fire which was burning in a northeasterly direction towards Indian Valley.
Sheriff Brian Martin spoke about evacuation and thanked the CAL Fire incident management teams, the California Highway Patrol and volunteer groups, among others for their hard work.
“For many of us in this room this is not our first rodeo,” he said. “Everybody in this room that has been through this before knows it’s going to be inconvenient, know it’s not going to be quick, and they also know we are doing the best we can to get your home as safely and quickly as possible. We will continue to work day and night.”
Billy See, incident commander for CAL Fire’s Management Team 3 said damage assessment teams were in the field trying to identify all the damaged or destroyed structures.
According to CAL Fire’s incident information reports Tuesday, 22 structures had been destroyed. 12 of those are residential and 10 were outbuildings according to See.
A complete assessment was to be completed within 36 hours he said, adding that the fire had consumed 10,500 acres and was 5 percent contained. (That had been updated to 11.500 on Tuesday.)
“Your homes, your properties are our No. 1 priority,” said See.
Displaced residents said they were interested in finding out where the fire was still active where most of the homes are.
In response to questions regarding the direction of the fire, See said although the fire was not active in Spring Valley, the main fire growth was pushing east and northeast.
“Each day we are fighting Mother Nature right now,” he said, adding that the region was under red flag warnings for several days for temperatures pushing 100 degrees with the delta-influence playing a role in challenging weather conditions for the next several days resulting in a merry-go around fight with Mother Nature.
Martin said it was unknown when people would be allowed to return to their homes, adding that he could not venture a guess on estimates for repopulation because of various factors including the restoration of gas and electric power. He said he was hoping for sometime this week, adding that approximately 1,500 people and about 500 to 600 homes were impacted.
As far as animals, the sheriff said people should contact animal control for delivering food and water to animals. As far as medications, he said residents should contact their pharmacies which can provide a limited supply during emergency situations during a declaration of emergency.
Clearlake Oaks resident David Hedrick, along with members of his family, has been at the Moose Lodge since the start of the incident. He said he lives right across the street where the fire originally started on Quail Trail. Hedrick said he works in constructing and has been losing money because he cannot go back into his property to retrieve his tools.
“I have my family to think about,” he said. “The hardships include, I can’t work and I barely brought any clothes, but my priority is my kids.”
