Rocky fire continues to burn near Clearlake

Flames have destroyed 24 homes and thousands more are in harm’s way.

Skip to 1:13 in the video for the most up-to-date fire information for Northern California.

The fire is 5 percent contained. The latest news update on the Rocky Fire 2015, the California wildfire in Lake, Yolo & Colusa Counties, was issued at 9 am today August 2, 2015.

Cal Fire reports the Rocky Fire has grown to 22,500 acres, with containment still at 5 percent. As the fire makes its way towards a major thoroughfare in Lake County, officials are stepping up an advisory to a mandatory evacuation for a dozen homes.

Two state highways are closed, the 20 and the 16, which are serving as fire breaks where crews have started backfires. Placerville resident Missi Clarke drove to the area to help her friend pack and now finds herself stuck. For the latest fire map, see below. A chance of thunderstorms, cooler temperatures, and higher humidity is expected for today.

The doubling in size of the fire overnight was “unprecedented behavior”, said Jody Traversaro, regional administrator for the California Office of Emergency Services. While crews are surprised by how hard the fire is pushing, they say they are prepared.

Almost 2,000 firefighters were battling the blaze, and another 6,000 personnel were working to quell 20 additional large fires across the state, stretching from the San Diego to just south of the Oregon border, Cal Fire spokesman Dan Berlant said Sunday. “They get moved around the incident”, he added.

“Firefighters continue to construct fire lines in an effort to achieve full perimeter control”, the forest service said in a statement. “It’s nice out here but, at the same time, it’s risky”, Lowenthal said.