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On Monday morning, Cal Fire said the fire had increased to 66,231 acres, with containment remaining at 5 percent.
Cal Fire said 96 structures – 40 residential, three commercial and 53 other – have been destroyed. Another 16 have been damaged; they include 10 homes, one commercial structure and five other types of buildings.
With an estimated 79,765 structures still threatened – including 70,425 homes, 750 commercial and 8,500 other types of structures – evacuations across a large portion of Sonoma County remain in effect, officials said.
Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said an estimated 185,000 people have been evacuated as a result of the fire.
Essick said his office was meeting with Cal Fire and county emergency officials to look at the evacuation area.
On Monday afternoon, Cal Fire issued a limited repopulation notification for the communities of Bodega, Bodega Bay, Carmet, Muniz Ranch, Sebastopol, Occidental, Freestone, Camp Meeker, Forestville, Rio Nido, Hacienda, Monte Rio, Cazadero, Guerneville and Valley Ford, and all areas west of East Side Road.
Areas throughout the Russian River Valley to Bodega Bay have been reduced to an evacuation warning and are open for repopulation, Cal Fire said.
Evacuation orders remain in place for areas north of Occidental Road while areas south of Occidental Road have been reduced to an evacuation warning and also may be repopulated, according to the update.
In Lake County, Sheriff Brian Martin said Monday that an evacuation warning issued Friday for residents of Adams Springs, Anderson Springs, Cobb, Gifford Springs, Hobergs and Whispering Pines, and along the Ford Flat Road and Socrates Mine Road remains in effect.
It is not a mandatory evacuation order but Lake County officials want residents of the area to be prepared to evacuate should it become necessary.
Cal Fire Division Chief Jonathan Cox said that on Monday the focus for firefighters is perimeter control and structure protection, with the goal of taking advantage of a 24-hour period of more favorable weather conditions.
The fire began Wednesday night in The Geysers geothermal steamfield. It has since been pushed by winds toward Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor.
Cox said Monday that overnight most of the fire activity was just south of Windsor, along the Shiloh Ridge area.
“Firefighters made an aggressive stand in that area,” he said, bringing in significant resources to fight the fire.
Essick said Monday that had Windsor not been evacuated, firefighters couldn't have been as aggressive in working the incident.
“The northern area of Windsor was saved yesterday because of their efforts,” Essick said, thanking community members for following directions to evacuate. “That is truly a success story.”
The National Guard as well as firefighters from a number of neighboring states have joined the effort, bringing the total number of firefighters on the lines on Monday to 4,150, Cal Fire said.
Ryan Walburn of the National Weather Service said that, after the weekend red flag warning expired at 11 a.m. Monday, there was a window of opportunity for quieter weather this afternoon, overnight tonight and into Tuesday morning.
He said forecasters are starting to get ready for another red flag event, expected to should start midday Tuesday and continuing until Wednesday morning.
At the end of the week, he said the forecast calls for less wind, but still no sign of rain.
The weekend winds had battered the fire area. Pacific Gas and Electric, which implemented a public safety power shutoff beginning on Saturday, reported winds of 102 miles per hour in the Pine Flat area, located within the Kincade fire footprint.
Fire Chief Incident Commander Mike Blankenheim of Cal Fire said the priority for firefighters on Monday will be working on perimeter control in the area of Mount St. Helena, on the Kincade fire's northeastern corner, as well as Mark West and Shiloh Ridge, areas the fire reached on Sunday night.
He said they also will focus on structure defense in Healdsburg and Windsor.
In other news, Assistant Chief Tim Noyes of the California Highway Patrol in Sonoma County said that late Sunday night the CHP was able to reopen all of Highway 101, both northbound and southbound lanes.
However, Noyes said that the ramps in the evacuated areas will remain blocked.
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