Terrible fires in wine country

Lots of property destruction so far. Hopefully no one seriously hurt, but lots of homes gone (and some hotels).

http://m.sfgate.com/news/article/2-big- ... 262945.php

[Jenise]

Was just watching footage from some of the local network outlets there. The fires came up so suddenly that it's unfortunately probably inevitable that people got trapped, as the fires were in several cases in all directions--no way out. Frightening. I just posted in F & F for Lou Kessler, Brian Miller and John Treder (hope I didn't forget anyone) to report in.

[Robin Garr]

I just came here to post that. Saw some photos by wine-geek FB friends that look horrific.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-m ... story.html

Terrifying.

Brings back memories of the Oakland Hills fire of 1991, which was so big and fast-moving that it was intensely frightening even if, like me, you weren't directly in its path.

I hope all our friends there are okay, and that there's no loss of life.

Just terrible. One death reported,but with as many homes and other structures that have been destroyed, some with very little warning, I fear there will be more.
And the property damage is huge, including some well known wineries
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/09/n ... acuations/

[Jenise]

Stags Leap, Wm Hill and Signorello confirmed in Napa near where Lou lives. He's apparently expected in New York tomorrow, or was.

It is frightening that disasters like this are becoming much more common. I hope that the direct human cost in Napa and Sonoma will be low but the material damage is sure to be vast and that too has severe human consequences.

Fires like this are sadly common in S.Europe, particularly in Greece and Portugal; some are still raging in the latter. Often the origin is criminal.

[Jenise]

Fires in So Cal were bad, too. I'm extremely concerned for Jason Hagen--on Facebook he posted a pic of a fire bearing down on his neighborhood.

[Jenise]

From Facebook: looks like Jason's okay.

But no one's heard from Lou and Bettylu. People who have their cell phones etc are looking for them, but they don't answer. Brad Kane in NY (where they were headed today) hasn't heard from them either.

Napa fire officials have released a map of burned areas; there's a link on this page:

http://napavalleyregister.com/napa-coun ... d5de7.html

A high school friend and her husband are safe, but their house in Santa Rosa is gone. I really hope the Kesslers make contact with someone soon.

Kesslers are OK, per a Facebook thread. They are in a hotel fairly close to where they live and did not make their planned NY trip. Their house is also OK.

Thank you for that good news.

From a Facebook friend:

This was posted by a friend:
Friends with Northern California connections:
If anyone has a horse trailer, Chalk Hill Ranch near Healdsburg needs emergency help. They have 54 horses in dire need of transportation off the ranch. Their phone number is 707-433-1804
Please share this post by copy/pasting.

Jim, I have put the word out on a few railfanning sites I visit every day. That is a lot of horse boxes.

[David M. Bueker]

The horse issue was resolved yesterday per several posts on FB.

Really glad to hear that the Kesslers are OK.

The horse issue was resolved yesterday per several posts on FB.

Oy...

Good!

Thanks for updating.

Kesslers are OK, per a Facebook thread. They are in a hotel fairly close to where they live and did not make their planned NY trip. Their house is also OK.

Good news! Also about the horses.

News of the disaster has reached France. Financial newspaper Les Echos carries an article predicting that the damage will lead to increasing prices of Napa and Sonoma trophy wines. Not mentioned, but perhaps an unspoken thought, is whether that could lead to tightening prices for Bordeaux as well.

Tourism in the area will surely take a hit for some time with the lovely countryside scorched in places and with many winery facilities, hotels and restaurants badly damaged.

From KRON 4 in San Francisco (I'm sure will grow as folks are able to get back in)

Here is a list of wineries damaged in the wine country fires:

Signorello Estate - Destroyed
The Napa County winery has been burned down.

White Rock Vineyard - Damaged
One of the oldest wineries in Napa County is likely to have suffered significant damage.

Paradise Ridge Winery - Destroyed
The Sonoma County winery has been burned down.

Frey Vineyards Winery - Destroyed
The Mendocino County winery has been burned down.

William Hill - Damaged
The Napa County winery sustained minor cosmetic damage, but buildings are still intact, according to the SF Gate.

Stags' Leap Winery - Damaged
The Napa County winery showed fire damage in many photos, but it is still unknown how much, according to the SF Gate.

Nicholson Ranch - Damaged
The Sonoma County winery was in the path of fire but escaped from being engulfed by flames. The winery only suffered minor damage.

Chateau St. Jean - Damaged
The Sonoma County winery sustained limited damage to the infrastructures.

Mayo Family Wineries - Damaged
The Sonoma County winery sustained minor damage, but the winery has been spared so far, according to the SF Gate.

Oster Wine Cellars - Destroyed
The Mendocino County winery has been burned down, according to the Mercury News.

Gundlach Bundschu Winery - Damaged
The Sonoma County winery sustained some damage, but the extent is still unknown, according to the SF Gate.

I don't live or work near the fire, but the fire has crossed the ridgeline into my county (Solano). A coworker was evacuated from a hillside neighborhood bordering Napa County, but we do not know the status of her house.

Nowhere near under any degree of control. Many roads in the rural valley west of Fairfield are now closed.

The smoke is so dense that it is making many people sick.

The scenes from Signorello are shocking.

[Jenise]

Another update:

Carole and Steve Lagier-Meredith evacuated yesterday.

[Jenise]

John Treder, report in please!!!!

[David M. Bueker]

Mandatory evacuation in Geyserville.

This may get worse before it gets better.

[Jenise]

Friends in Santa Rosa who haven't evacuated are preparing to do so today as the winds are picking up again. "It's like a war zone", they say.

Happily, the winds did not really jump up today (yet).

Well under 10 mph throughout the region

(the amazing www.windy.com shows exactly what the name suggests!)

In Solano County, the fire basically stalled out for the most part. Sadly, I am betting the amazing glass house on the ridgeline (Twin Sisters) once owned by libertarian fruitcake John Roscoe was destroyed, but the fire stayed out of the main residential areas below the mountains.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1700 ... 2894_zpid/

I worked in our Emergency Operations Center and it was pretty calm and quiet today, luckily.

With friends last night, we had the lovely rich but still Bordeauxish bottle of Robert Sinskey POV. The reports are unclear as to how much damage the magnificent winery building experienced-the CALFIRE maps were ominous. I hope they are OK>
Sinskey is my only remaining Napa Valley wine club, and I love their wines and the story and philosophy behind them. They are like a more upscale Preston Family, and I really want them to survive unscathed!

Cross our fingers overnight. This is still a scary, scary situation. At least the resources are pouring in to fight the fire.