SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Flames have burned over 25,000 acres in northern Sonoma County since Wednesday night after the Kincade Fire broke out northeast of Geyserville, Cal Fire officials said. No one has been injured but 49 structures have been destroyed and over 23,000 are threatened.

As of 7 a.m. Saturday, the fire was 10 percent contained. In its Saturday morning update, CalFire said flames burning in remote steep terrain was making access to the fire difficult and slow due to narrow roads.

Cal Fire officials said wind has been driving the fire in the area of The Geysers geothermal activity. The inferno’s flames are fanned by wind gusts of up to 60 mph on the highest peaks as humidity remains very low in the area.

The Kincade Fire erupted at 9:27 p.m. Wednesday at John Kincade Road and Burned Mountain Road near The Geysers in northern Sonoma County, according to Cal Fire.

All roads east of U.S. Highway 101 in the Geyserville area remained closed as 1,300 fire personnel battle the blaze. The area east of Highway 128 from Geysers Road north to the community of Geyserville is under evacuation. An evacuation warning is also in effect Saturday for residents of Cobb Mountain and some surrounding communities.

In less than 24 hours, the massive blaze has forced the evacuation of some 2,000 people potentially in its path. Geyserville was added to the list of communities whose residents were ordered to flee as the fast-moving wildfire roars relentlessly through Sonoma County.

“The community of Geyserville is now under evacuation order,” the sheriff’s office said at 6:23 a.m. Thursday. “The Kincade Fire has crossed Highway 128 near Moody Lane and is heading west. If you’re in Geyserville, leave now. Head south to evacuation centers … All other evacuation orders and warnings remain in place.”

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Healdsburg Unified School District, Alexander Valley School District and Cloverdale Unified School District closed because of the fire.

Healdsburg city officials reiterated Thursday that no evacuations have been ordered within city limits.

“Stay vigilant,” Healdsburg city officials said in a Nixle alert Thursday morning. “If you feel unsafe, please take necessary safety precautions.”

Prior to the Geyserville evacuation, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office already had ordered immediate, mandatory evacuation orders east of Geyserville to include all off Red Winery Road, all of Alexander Mountain Road, Highway 128 from Geysers Road to River Road including the River Rock Casino, and all roads off River Road.

Residents: call 211 for information. Only call 911 if your life is in danger.

“Leave immediately if you are in these locations,” the sheriff’s office said in a Nixle alert at 12:23 a.m. Thursday with an expanded evacuation zone. “Call 211 for information.”

The fire surged from 300-400 acres around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday to 5,000 acres around 1 a.m. Thursday and then 7,000 acres a little more than one hour later, per fire officials. As of 4 a.m. Thursday, the blaze had burned more than 10,000 acres.

“CAL FIRE and multiple local government agencies are on scene of a wind driven grass and brush fire with a north east wind in the area of the Geysers,” said Cal Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit Spokesman Bruce Lang. “Structures and powerlines threatened, long range spotting observed. Structure damage assessments will begin today.”

Road closures

Cloverdale Geysers Road, Geyser Road, Red Winery Road, Alexander Mountain Road, Pine Flat Road and all roads east of state Highway 128 to Geyserville remained closed Thursday to through traffic, Lang said.

Additional road closures included Healdsburg Avenue at Alexander Valley Road, Lytton Station at Lytton Springs, SR-128 at Pine Flat Road and SR-128 at Railroad Avenue, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Residents should prepare for the possibility of U.S. Highway 101 being shut down, officials said Thursday, although there is currently no indication that this will happen.

“Take Care of Each Other”

Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick encouraged evacuees and those under an evacuation warning to “take care of each other.”

“This is an emotional time for many people,” Essick said, noting that the fire comes just weeks after the two-year anniversary of deadly and destructive wildfires that burned through much of the North Bay in 2017.

“Take care of each other,” he said. “We want you to take care of your neighbors.”

PG&E officials have said power in the area where the fire started had been turned off earlier Wednesday as part of the utility’s planned Public Safety Power Shutoff.

Cal Fire officials said it was still too early for investigators to determine the cause of the fire.

CHP dispatchers started receiving reports about the massive wildfire at 9:50 p.m. Wednesday from the area of 6670 Red Winery Road. It was reportedly already so big of a blaze it was producing smoke visible from U.S. Highway 101 north of River Road.

“Evacuate if you are on Geysers Road to Highway 128, Pine Flat Road, or Red Winery Road,” the sheriff’s office said at 10:34 p.m. Wednesday. “Be prepared to evacuate if you are in northern Healdsburg or Geyserville.”

The Kincade Fire was burning in a westerly direction in windy conditions. A National Weather Service red flag warning is in effect for the North Bay until 4 p.m. Thursday, with many residents of Geyserville, Cloverdale and unincorporated county areas of Healdsburg already without power because of a fire-weather related PG&E public safety power shutoff.

Earlier, wind speeds at two PG&E weather stations in the vicinity of the fire were sustained at more than 50 mph, with gusts greater than 70 mph, said Matt Mehle, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

Evacuation centers were set up for Kincade Fire evacuees Wednesday night at Windsor High School, 8695 Windsor Road, in Windsor, and at the Healdsburg Community Center, 1557 Healdsburg Ave., in Healdsburg, according to the county of Sonoma.

The Sonoma County Fairgrounds, 1350 Bennett Valley Road in Santa Rosa, opened early Thursday as an evacuation center for large animals. Evacuees should enter the Fairgrounds through Gate 7 off of Aston Avenue, and are asked to call Cliff at 707-529-8464 when en route to the fairgrounds with their horses and livestock animals.

The Healdsburg evacuation center is pet-friendly, the city of Healdsburg said in an email alert late Wednesday night.

“We also have space in the southern parking lot behind the center that’s big enough for livestock trailers,” city of Healdsburg officials said.

Healdsburg firefighters are among those responding to the Kincade Fire.

Healdsburg city officials noted a power outage was affecting the downtown and southern areas of Healdsburg, but said the outage was not related to the PG&E public safety power shutoff implemented Wednesday afternoon in parts of Sonoma County.

“City electric crews are now patrolling the lines to troubleshoot, find the cause and resolve the problem. This issue is unrelated to the current PG&E public-safety power shut-off (PSPS).”

A PG&E spokesperson confirmed power was shut down to 27,837 customers in the area around 3 p.m. Wednesday for safety reasons.

“The Kincade fire is near the PSPS footprint, and we are working to gather additional information,” the statement read.

A Geyserville Fire Protection District Facebook post reported that power lines were reported down at the time of the blaze, but a PG&E spokesperson couldn’t confirm or deny if there had been reports of downed power lines in the area prior to the fire and referred questions to Cal Fire.

A dispatcher for the fire district also referred questions to Cal Fire, who didn’t immediately return calls seeking comment early Thursday.

Patch will update this post as more information is gathered; refresh the page for the latest.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.