USA, California:

Firefighters Make Progress Against Geysers Fire (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

The fire destroyed a cooling tower on Calpine's McCabe power plant, forcing it to shut down, and damaged other energy infrastructure in the area.

California Fire Map showing limits of the McCabe Fire
Click for the latest details (CAL FIRE)

A large wildfire burning in the remote Geysers geothermal area in northeastern Sonoma County continued to expand Saturday, rolling through dry brush and woodland to burn a total of 3,000 acres since early Friday.

At times when the wind was strongest, at 25 to 30 mph, flames threatened about a dozen homes and up to four geothermal power plants tucked deep within the Mayacmas range northeast of Geyserville. 

But firefighters made progress against the McCabe fire, attacking it with five times the personnel from Friday and more resources, including 120 engines, 27 bulldozers, 14 helicopters and two air tankers. 

Map of Geothermal Power Plants in
The Geysers (Courtesy Calpine)

Calpine Corp., the principal operator of the Geysers geothermal field spanning the Sonoma-Lake county border, began moving employees back into the area after evacuating all non-essential personnel Friday.

The fire scorched cooling towers on the company's McCabe power plant, forcing it to shut down, and damaged other energy infrastructure in the area. The Houston-based company operates 15 geothermal plants in the area. A total of two are offline because of the fire, a Calpine spokeswoman said Friday.

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