July 24--A wildfire that quickly raced out of control toward homes near Napa Valley because of erratic winds has slowed its spread in recent days as weather conditions have turned in firefighters' favor, officials said Friday.
"Thank goodness the winds aren't like they've been on that first day," said Kaaren Stasko, a manager with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The Wragg fire in Napa County has burned 6,900 acres and was 20% contained Friday morning; the blaze is threatening 150 buildings, CalFire said.
After rapidly shifting winds pushed the fire through 4,000 acres since it ignited Wednesday, hundreds of firefighters swarmed the area near Lake Berryessa to help while residents in Cold Canyon, Mix Canyon and Quail Ridge fled.
Steep, rugged canyons have challenged the more than 1,500 firefighters deployed to battle the blaze, which also destroyed an outbuilding and a pop-up tent trailer, said Amy Head, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
"Crews are having to hike way into there, and we've had to shuttle them in, in some cases by helicopter," she said.
Residents in Quail Ridge and Canyon Creek remain under evacuation; residents in Golden Bear estates have been allowed to return, CalFire said.
Officials initially said the fire was sparked by a vehicle collision. The exact cause remains under investigation, but the fire's swift spread underscored how withered the brushland has become.
"It's been dry as a bone," said Ralph Hux, 42, manager of a pizzeria a few miles from the burn area. Hux said he already had overnight bags packed with family photos and other keepsakes -- just in case.
Parts of Highway 128 near the southern rim of Lake Berryessa remained closed, officials said.
Meanwhile, about 120 miles east near Lake Tahoe, firefighters were battling a 100-acre brush fire in the Eldorado National Forest.
The fire, which remained 5% contained Friday, forced the California Highway Patrol to close Highway 50 between Sly Park Road and Meyers, cutting off a major route between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe.
Nearly 200 firefighters were assigned to the blaze, which tore through timber and steep canyons and was burning in a northerly direction toward the burn area of 2013's Kyburz fire, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
Mandatory evacuations were ordered for those near Whitehall to the Sand Flat campground, and the American Red Cross set up an evacuation center in Pollock Pines.
Officials fear the blazes could be a taste of what the region can expect through the summer, part of a larger weather pattern marked by fitful extremes.
In another example of El Ni impact, a band of thunderstorms lashed Yosemite National Park, triggering mud and rock slides on Highway 140, which remained closed Thursday.
Yet the precipitation that drenched the Sierra was nowhere near the Wragg fire, named after a canyon in the burn area, located about 15 miles northeast of wine country in the Napa Valley.
Staff writer Rong-Gong Lin II contributed to this report.
For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna and @MattHjourno.
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