California blaze forces evacuations as wind spurs blackouts
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Northern California blaze forced evacuation orders and warnings for nearly all of Sonoma County stretching to the coast, with forecasts of strong winds prompting blackouts to prevent fire-causing power line damage.
Pacific Gas & Electric started shutting off power Saturday around 5 p.m. for an estimated 2.35 million people across 38 counties. About 90,000 residents were ordered to evacuate towns near the 40-square-mile (104-square-kilometer) fire.
Saturday night's evacuation order encompassed a huge swath of wine country stretching from the inland community of Healdsburg west through the Russian River Valley and to Bodega Bay on the coast, Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said. An even broader area was put under a warning for residents to get ready to leave at a moment's notice.
Some weekend gusts might reach 75 mph (120 kph) or higher in a "historic" wind event, the National Weather Service said. Winds could lead to "erratic fire behavior" and send embers for miles, warned the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Concern that gusts could knock down power lines and spark devastating wildfires prompted two blackouts in recent weeks.
PG&E said the new wave of blackouts was affecting about 940,000 homes and businesses in 36 counties for 48 hours or longer. The city of San Francisco was not in line for a blackout amid shut-offs for most of the rest of the San Francisco Bay Area, the wine country to the north and the Sierra foothills.
The sheriff pleaded with residents in the evacuation zone to get out immediately, citing the 24 lives lost when a wildfire swept through the region two years ago.
"I'm seeing people reporting that they're going to stay and fight this fire," Essick said. "You cannot fight this. Please...