Firefighters Look For Opening As Pawnee Fire Burns Lake County
LAKE COUNTY (CBS13) — Thousands of Lake County residents remain evacuated, as fire crews try to control the Pawnee Fire.
As of Monday evening, 8,200 acres have been scorched around Clearlake Oaks. Firefighters still have zero-percent containment on the blaze as winds continue to kick up the flames.
The Lake County Sheriff ordered new evacuations for the Double Eagle Ranch Area Monday afternoon, as the fire threatened the other side of the Spring Valley subdivision.
"You see the flames, the glow coming right at you, so you have to go you know it," said one evacuee who is now living in his camper, waiting to go back to his home.
It's Day 3 of firefighters chasing flames down in Lake County. The Pawnee Fire is showing no sign of slowing down. High winds fanned the flames up a hill outside the Spring Valley subdivision, where Jackie Pitts was evacuated from on Saturday.
"When we left I thought we would be back in a few hours, I just thought they would have it under control," said Pitts.
Pitts is new to wildfire country. This is her first time having to evacuate from her home. She managed to grab her homing pigeons and five dogs, after wheeling her mom out to safety.
"We actually didn't know where to go and when we heard, we just thought we would pull over on the side of the road," Pitts added.
Pitts has been staying in her camper with family at the Moose Lodge. She says she wishes she had been more prepared.
"We're not out of the woods yet, zero-percent containment, we have a lot of line to construct with our bulldozers and hand crews," said a Cal Fire spokeswoman.
The firefight is on from the air down to the ground.
"Last year was the worst fire season in the history of the state, we are a couple hundred more fires ahead of what we saw last year a well as a couple thousand acres," the CAL Fire spokeswoman said.
Fire crews say their biggest fear now is a potential shift in the wind. With dozens of homes already destroyed, they worry the Pawnee Fire could change direction and wipe out neighborhoods on the other side of the hill. Evacuees remain on edge, their one wish is to go home.
A shelter has been set up at Lower Lake High School. Cal Fire crews say they hope to gain the upper hand on the fire over the next few days before triple-digit temperatures and high winds return for the weekend.
