Brush fire chars 200 acres near Brentwood
BRENTWOOD -- Firefighters will spend the rest of the week putting out hot spots in Brentwood after a fire late Thursday afternoon charred more than 200 acres.
"With the drought, with the heat, with the expected heat tomorrow, everything is really dry. The relative humidity is dropping and the winds are kind of the normal winds that we do have out here," said Cal Fire battalion chief Jesse Winnen.
A small army of firefighters from Cal Fire and Contra Costa Fire were able to keep the Marsh Fire from burning any of the nearby homes.
The fire led to the closure of Vasco Road between Camino Diablo and Marsh Creek Road.
A cause of the fire has not been determined.
HEAT ADDS TO FIRE DANGER AROUND THE BAY
With record heat in the forecast for Friday, it would seem the risk of wildfires would be at an all-time high but experts say it's not that simple. High temperatures alone don't lead to an increased fire danger.
"When we have the winds, the low humidity and the fuels and the terrain, so it's a combination of factors," said Santa Rosa fire marshal Paul Lowenthal.
That's why Santa Rosa's fire department is moving ahead with a controlled burn planned for Saturday.
"The temperatures alone aren't enough to stop this. The proactive and benefits of a project like this far outweigh just high heat," Lowenthal said.
Firefighters will be keeping a close eye on weather conditions throughout the next few days because, as we've seen in years past, the weather is one of the biggest factors when it comes to wildfire danger.
