7,500-Acre Fire Nears Vineyards

A wind-driven wildfire quickly burned 7,500 acres of brush and timber Saturday as it bore down on Sonoma County’s wine country and threatened to knock out power to parts of Northern California. Meanwhile, another blaze destroyed 11 homes in Calaveras County, fire officials said.

“It’s blown up,” said Dana Cole, a division chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection who was monitoring the Sonoma blaze. “Right now, we have no control on the head of the fire.”

By early afternoon, the fire had raced down the Mayacamas Mountains to within a few miles of vineyards in the Alexander Valley, which straddles the Russian River and draws tourists to dozens of wineries.

Ash from the fire fell at the Sausal Winery in Healdsburg as helicopters did laps over the vineyard, scooping up water from nearby lakes to drop on the flames that the state forestry agency said were advancing at a mile per hour.

“Jack rabbits were running out of the vineyard and the geese were flying away,” said Sarah Campbell, a saleswoman at the winery. “We were worried that as soon as it came over that ridge we’d have to bail, but it never did.”

It was the largest of several fires burning in California, where fire danger has been extreme because of low humidity, high winds and abundant tinder.

Another blaze sparked by a burning motor home Friday destroyed 11 homes in the Sierra foothills of Calaveras County and burned 2,737 acres of grass, oaks and chaparral. The fire also forced 3,000 people to evacuate and threatened 1,400 homes and 100 businesses in rural subdivisions.

More than 1,000 firefighters and 81 engines responded to the blaze, which was burning south of Camanche Reservoir. It was 65% contained Saturday evening, a forestry department spokeswoman said. The agency estimated the fire would be fully contained by Sunday.

Evacuees were allowed to return to subdivisions Saturday afternoon. Meanwhile, the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved a grant to fund 75% of the costs of fighting the Calaveras blaze.

The Sonoma County fire started late Friday afternoon near The Geysers, the world’s largest geothermal power facility, which harnesses steam from the Earth to provide enough electricity to power 1 million homes in Sonoma, Napa, Lake, Marin and Mendocino counties. The cause was not immediately known.

The rugged terrain is crossed by major power lines from the 21 generating plants in the facility, prompting the threat of blackouts. Two-thirds of the plants were shut down, and two of three transmission lines were not being operated, said Kent Robertson, a spokesman for Calpine Corp., which owns most of the plants.

Pacific Gas and Electric, which owns the lines, was rerouting electricity from other plants, spokesman David Eisenhauer said.

As many as 200 homes were threatened as the fire was fanned by gusts that reached 36 mph, Cole said.

The fire grew quickly from 400 acres at 5 a.m. Saturday to 14,000 acres by 2 p.m., when it was just 10% contained.

No homes had burned and no injuries had been reported, though three youths had been evacuated from the area by helicopter.

In other fires:

* Kern County firefighters doused 11 fires Saturday that had been deliberately set along a nine-mile stretch of road, spokesman Doug Johnston said. Some incendiary devices were found near the sources of the fires, he said.

* Four firefighters received minor injuries during a 1,200-acre grass fire that was contained in a rural area between Vacaville and Fairfield, said Solano County Sheriff’s Deputy Ken Kramer. One firefighter was burned and three were stung by bees. Residents in a section of Fairfield lost power and cable TV.

* A firefighter was treated and released for facial burns received while battling a 700-acre grass fire that briefly shut down the Rancho Murrieta airport in eastern Sacramento County, said Cindy McVay, a forestry department dispatcher. The fire was contained in the afternoon.

* A fire in Rancho San Diego burned 75 acres Saturday morning behind a community college before it was fully contained. About 100 people were evacuated but had returned home by evening after the fire near Cuyamaca College, said Lt. Dennis Brugos.

* Richmond firefighters doused an afternoon brush fire that briefly threatened two restaurants and an apartment complex near Interstate 80.

* A 416-acre fire that began Thursday in the Sierra foothills of Mariposa County was fully contained Saturday afternoon after destroying a garage, another building and several vehicles, the forestry department said.