Kincade Fire

The Kincade Fire was a wildfire that burned in Sonoma County, California in the United States. The fire started northeast of Geyserville in The Geysers on 9:24 p.m. on October 23, 2019 and subsequently burned 77,758 acres (31,468 ha) until the fire was fully contained on November 6, 2019. The fire threatened over 90,000 structures and caused widespread evacuations throughout Sonoma County, including the communities of Geyserville, Healdsburg, and Windsor. The majority of Sonoma County and parts of Lake County were under evacuation warnings. The fire was the largest of the 2019 California wildfire season, and also the largest wildfire ever to occur in Sonoma County.[4]

Kincade Fire
Satellite image of smoke from the Kincade Fire on October 24
LocationJohn Kincade Road and Burned Mountain Road, northeast of Geyserville, Sonoma County, California, United States
Coordinates38.792458°N 122.780053°W / 38.792458; -122.780053
Statistics[1][2]
Date(s)October 23, 2019 (2019-10-23) – November 6, 2019 (2019-11-06)
Burned area77,758 acres (31,468 ha)[1]
Causeconfirmed, but reported that started when high-voltage PG&E transmission line malfunctioned near point of origin[3]
Buildings destroyed374[1]
Non-fatal injuries4[1]
Map
Location in California

The fire

The Kincade Fire was reported burning at John Kincade Road and Burned Mountain Road in The Geysers, northeast of Geyserville, California, at 9:57 PM on October 23, 2019.[5][6] The fire started at 9:24 PM during an extreme wind event.[7]

The cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed by a formal investigation, but a compulsory report shows that the fire started when a 230,000 volt transmission line failed near the point of origin, just before power was about to be shut off in the area.[3] On October 26, PG&E began shutting off power in an attempt to prevent additional fires, leaving an estimated three million people without power.[8] On October 28, the California Public Utilities Commission announced an investigation into the shutoffs.[9] "Despite the latest shutdowns, PG&E admitted last week that its equipment may have started the Kincade fire," said the San Jose Mercury News in an editorial condemning the utility's practices and calling for regulatory action.[10]

Impact
An orange sunrise over San Francisco, caused by smoke from the fire, on October 29

The fire "chewed through more than 100 square miles and destroyed or damaged over 120 buildings."[11] Eighty thousand more structures were threatened by the fire, and PG&E said it had cut off power to more than a million customers.[11] According to the Federal Communications hundreds of cell phone towers were down because of power shutoffs.[12] The Soda Rock Winery in Healdsburg was destroyed and the Field Stone Vineyard was heavily damaged.[13]

Evacuations

On October 26, mandatory evacuations had been issued for 90,000 people. As the fire spread, by October 27, evacuation orders and warnings grew to encompass nearly all of Sonoma County, including about 190,000 people, making it the largest evacuation ever in Sonoma County. Many people were forced to flee in the darkness due to ongoing power shutoffs in the region.[8]

National Guard Roadblock during Kincade Fire

The Sonoma County government, in conjunction with Esri, published an interactive map containing incidents and evacuation zones associated with the fires. [14]

Utilities
Further information: 2019 California power shutoffs

In the early weeks of the fire, PG&E initiated a massive power shut-off to nearly 940,000 customers by October 26, with a projected total number of customers impacted to be close to 2.5 to 2.8 million. There were to be six phases of power shutoff between October 26 and 27.[15] The outages did not go over well. "The issue isn't even all of the power shutoffs," said Mendocino County chief executive Carmel Angelo. "It's the lack of communication."[16]

Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit commuter rail offered free service between October 30 and November 6 initially as far north as Downtown Santa Rosa, then eventually on the whole line for those needing transportation alternatives.[17]

Fire growth and containment progress
Fire containment status[18]
Gray: contained; Red: active; %: percent contained;
DateArea burned acres (km2)Containment
Oct 23400 acres (2 km2)[19]
0%
Oct 2416,000 acres (65 km2)[20]
5%
Oct 2523,700 acres (96 km2)[21]
5%
Oct 2625,955 acres (105 km2)[22]
11%
Oct 2754,298 acres (220 km2)[23]
5%
Oct 2874,324 acres (301 km2)[24]
15%
Oct 2976,138 acres (308 km2)[25]
15%
Oct 3076,825 acres (311 km2)[26]
30%
Oct 3176,825 acres (311 km2)[27]
60%
Nov 177,758 acres (315 km2)[28]
65%
Nov 277,758 acres (315 km2)[29]
72%
Nov 377,758 acres (315 km2)[30]
76%
Nov 477,758 acres (315 km2)[31]
80%
Nov 577,758 acres (315 km2)[32]
84%
Nov 677,758 acres (315 km2)[33]
100%
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See also

References
  1. "Kincade Fire | Welcome to CAL FIRE". fire.ca.gov. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  2. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF). California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. State of California. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  3. Gafni, Matthias (October 26, 2019). "PG&E connection to Kincade Fire could deepen utility's jeopardy". SF Chronicle. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  4. "Kincade fire, biggest in county history, has scorched an area 3x the size of Santa Rosa". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. October 30, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  5. Chabria, Anita; Dolan, Maura (October 27, 2019). "Blackouts and mass evacuations as Kincade fire grows amid high winds". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  6. Graff, Amy (October 24, 2019). "Map: Kincade Fire burning in north Sonoma County". SFGate. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  7. "Kincade Fire: Why PG&E is on the hot seat again over latest devastating wildfire". The Mercury News. October 25, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  8. Cagle, Susie; Koran, Mario (October 27, 2019). "'You can't fight this': California wildfires force historic evacuation in Sonoma County". The Guardian. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  9. Marisa Kendall; Maggie Angst; Julia Prodis Sulek; Fiona Kelliher; Thy Vo (October 30, 2019). "AFTER RESPITE, WINDS RETURN: 76,000 ACRES BURNED IN KINCADE FIRE; PG&E TO ISSUE REBATES: Bay Area : PG&E may restore power today, but air quality issues are likely to remain". San Jose, CA: The Mercury News. p. A1.
  10. "PG&E fiasco calls for new PUC vision on ensuring safe power". San Jose, CA: Mercury News. October 30, 2019. p. A10.
  11. John Bacon; Chris Woodyard (October 29, 2019). "New wildfire sends more fleeing: Thousands in California ordered to leave homes". USA Today. p. 3A.
  12. Levi Sumagaysay (October 30, 2019). "PG&E, wireless carriers answer bit questions". San Jose: Mercury News. p. A7.
  13. Jessica Yadegaran (October 30, 2019). "One winery destroyed, others suffer damage". San Jose: Mercury News. p. A7.
  14. "ArcGIS Web Application". sonomacounty.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  15. Aaro, David (October 26, 2019). "California wildfires force more than 50,000 evacuations after 'historic wind event,' more power shutoffs". Fox News. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  16. Janie Har; Jocelyn Gecker (October 30, 2019). "Anger mounting: Frustration is building amid another round of PG&E blackouts". San Mateo: The Daily Journal. p. 1.
  17. "Smart Train Service Running On Limited Schedule Wednesday Through Nov. 6". SFGate. Bay City News Service. October 29, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  18. "Kincade Fire Newsreleases". Cal Fire.
  19. "CAL FIRE LNU Twitter".
  20. "Kincade Fire Incident" (PDF).
  21. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  22. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  23. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  24. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  25. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  26. "Kincade Fire Incident Update" (PDF).
  27. "Cal Fire's beatdown of Kincade intensifies, reaches 60% containment".
  28. "Kincade Fire is now 65% contained".
  29. "Containment of Kincade Fire Increases to 72%".
  30. "Kincade Fire containment grows to 72% while Ventura County fire still rages".
  31. "Kincade Fire 80% Contained; All Evacuations Lifted".
  32. "Kincade Fire containment grows to 86% as residents put back the pieces".
  33. Rossman & Lee (November 6, 2019). "Kincade fire in Sonoma County fully contained". Press Democrat. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
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