Winters Fire

Winters Fire
Date(s)
  • July 6, 2017 (2017-07-06)
  • July 12, 2017 (2017-07-12)
LocationVaca Mountains,
Yolo County,
California
Coordinates38°29′43″N 122°01′30″W / 38.49521°N 122.0251°W / 38.49521; -122.0251
Statistics[1][2]
Burned area2,269 acres (918 ha)
Ignition
CauseUnder investigation
Map
Winters Fire is located in California
Winters Fire
Location in California

The Winters Fire was a wildfire that started on Thursday, July 6, 2017 in the Vaca Mountains, near Lake Berryessa west of the city of Winters, in Yolo County, northern California. The fire was named the Winters incident due to its proximity to the city.

Progression

On Thursday, July 7, at around 12:45 p.m. a fire was reported burning in the area of Pleasant View Road, three miles southwest of the town of Winters.[3] Soon dubbed the Winters Fire, the blaze was initially reported 30 acres in size with a moderate rate of spread.[4] Highway 128 was soon shut down as the fire burned north, away from the highway.[5] By that afternoon, mandatory evacuations were ordered for Pleasant View Road and Los Positos near Highway 21 and Golden Bear Estates as the fire ballooned to 500 acres.[5] As of 6 p.m., that evening, the fire had burned upwards of 1,000 acres as more than 500 fire personnel were on scene fighting the incident, putting containment at 15 percent.[6][7]

The Winters Fire burned within the same perimeter of the Cold Fire of August 2016, as well as other previous brushfires such as the 2015 Wragg Fire and 2014 Monticello Fire.[7] Winters City Manager John Donlevy stated that this was now the fourth year in row where a major wildfire had burned in virtually exactly the same area.[8]

By Friday morning, July 7, the fire had consumed 1,800 acres however by 2 p.m. the mandatory evacuations for Positas Road and Golden Bear Estates had been lifted.[3] The fire's acreage was reported at 1,931 acres (781 ha) due to better mapping of the fire area. The fire was fully contained on July 12 after consuming 2,269 acres.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "Winters Fire". Incident Information. Cal Fire. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  2. ^ "Yolo County wildfire burns 1,932 acres, Highway 128 remains closed". Napa Valley Register. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  3. ^ a b Lindelof, Bill. "Winters Fire evacuations lifted as crews battle wind, steep terrain". The Sacrament Bee. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  4. ^ "Firefighters are battling..." CAL FIRE TWITTER. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  5. ^ a b Comstock, Nicole. "Evacuations Ordered for Grass Fire Near Winters". FOX 40 News. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  6. ^ Bollea, Drew. "Winters Fire Spreads Rapidly, Puts Yolo County Homeowners On Edge". CBS Sacramento. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  7. ^ a b Locke, Cathy. "Winters Fire grows to 1,000 acres, prompts evacuations". The Sacrament Bee. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  8. ^ Dowling, Sarah. "Winters fire forces evacuations, road closures". Daily Democrat. Retrieved 6 July 2017.