USA, California: Wildfire Burning Near The Geysers Geothermal Field - Update

Kincade Fire: Wind-whipped blaze grows to 54,000 acres, as more flee Sonoma County (Napa Valley Register)

The Geothermal Resources Council sends best wishes to all those affected by the destructive wildfires in California, especially the geothermal community in and around The Geysers.

(Courtesy Sonoma County)

Fierce winds on Sunday continued to push the Kincade Fire farther into Sonoma County, torching wineries, hilltop homes and threatening the towns of Healdsburg, Windsor and Calistoga. In the largest evacuation in county history, some 180,000 people from the Wine Country to the coast were ordered to leave as more than 54,000 acres were charred by the rapidly growing blaze. Just 5 percent of the fire is contained, down from 10 percent, as firefighters braced for more blazes that were expected to kick up with the winds again late Sunday night.

Although no deaths have been reported, as of Sunday evening, the fire has taken its toll: 94 structures were destroyed, including 31 homes, and 17 structures were damaged in the blaze that began Thursday afternoon.

From the Global Geothermal News archives:

• Thursday, October 24, 2019 - USA, California: Wildfire Burning Near The Geysers Geothermal Field

A spokesman for the Calpine geothermal facility, The Geysers in Lake County near the Sonoma County border, said Thursday that the Kincade Fire caused relatively minor damage and the fire threat to the facility has passed.

"Some of our operations have been temporarily suspended but we expect production will resume very soon," Calpine spokesman Brett Kerr said in the Napa Valley Register news. 

"Consistent with our fire prevention protocols, due to the wind conditions we had de-energized our local power line system before the fire started. We do not believe our facilities caused the fire. There are power lines operated by third parties across The Geysers," Kerr said.

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