Philip Galbraith, 52, said he and his 20-year-old son received no warning of the approaching fire until a neighbor began “desperately banging” on his door around 2:45 a.m.
“I got out
Philip Galbraith, 52, said he and his 20-year-old son received no warning of the approaching fire until a neighbor began “desperately banging” on his door around 2:45 a.m.
“I got out
The authorities have also ordered residents to evacuate in several other areas where groups of fires, also likely caused by lightning, are spreading quickly. The SCU Lightning Complex, a group of about 20 different fires, more than doubled in size overnight, and is now burning over 85,000 acres across five counties — largely in unpopulated regions near the Bay Area — and is just 5 percent contained. A third combination of fires, known as the CZU August Lightning Complex, has grown to 10,000 acres and forced evacuations in Santa Cruz County.
Firefighters had hoped for calmer weather overnight, but gusty winds arrived instead, pushing the fire toward vegetation and other fresh fuel, said Lynnette Round, a spokeswoman for California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
“Today they’re going to be in for another firefight,” she said, as the winds and dry, hot weather continue.
