A rapidly spreading wildfire forced the evacuation of at least nine wineries in Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley on Sunday. Thirteen other wineries were under an evacuation warning, depending on the speed of the fire’s spread.
By Monday afternoon, the fire known as the Point Fire had reached 1,200 acres, with only 20 percent contained. The affected area is rural, but contains century-old Zinfandel vineyards, as well as homes and wineries. At least one barn has been destroyed, although there is no information yet on other structures. CalFire has been fighting the fire from the air with helicopters, including at night, and with planes during the day.
“This area of Dry Creek Valley has residential, industrial, commercial and recreational values at risk,” said CalFire Assistant Chief Mike Wink. “All of those factors are of great concern.”
Evacuated wineries include Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery, Bella Vineyards & Wine Caves, Capo Creek Winery, Martorana Family Winery, Michel-Schlumberger Wine Estate, Quivira Vineyards, Mounts Family Winery, A. Rafanelli Winery and Dutcher Crossing Winery.
“Fortunately, our Ferrari-Carano team, vineyards and winery are currently safe,” winery spokesperson Nora Feeley told Wine-Searcher. “We evacuated yesterday and as a precaution, we will remain closed until Tuesday, June 18.”
Dry Creek Valley has over 9,000 acres of vineyards belonging to 150 different producers. It is especially known for its Zinfandel. There are 32 Dry Creek Valley vineyards recorded in the Old Vine Registry that are at least 69 years old, including 18 that are more than 100 years old and five planted in the 19th century. The oldest are two Teldeschi Ranch vineyards planted in 1885.
Vineyards have greater resistance to fire than forests or grasslands, but many of the oldest vineyards are dryland, and one of the reasons for the resistance of vineyards to fire is that vines tend to retain more water than other plants.
Sonoma County set up evacuation centers at two local high schools, Laguna and El Molino. More than 300 residents were ordered to evacuate, while another 400 are under an evacuation warning that could be updated. Power has been cut in the area affected by the fire. There is still no indication how the fire started.
The Point Fire is the largest and earliest wildfire to hit Sonoma County since 2016. But it wasn’t a surprise, as conditions had been setting it up.
During the winter, California had an exceptional rainy season, enough to refill reservoirs after several years of drought. However, that meant a lot of fresh vegetation, which has become fuel for fires in hot, dry conditions. Napa County had an even earlier start to wildfire season, with the 60-acre Crystal Fire occurring two weeks earlier.
Much of northern California wine country was under a red flag warning for fire risk on Monday, due to hot, dry and windy conditions accelerating the spread of fire. The relative humidity in Healdsburg, the city closest to the Point Fire, was 10 percent Monday afternoon; In contrast, San Francisco had a relative humidity of 37 percent and Oakland 42 percent. Residents of the cities of Napa and Sonoma may be relieved that the Point Fire is miles away, as both cities had relative humidities of just 6 percent.
The American Red Cross issued an unhealthy air quality warning for the North Bay, north of San Francisco, and suggested that people who must go outside wear an N-95 mask. Perhaps due to strong winds, air quality in San Francisco and the city of Napa remained good Monday afternoon.
Good news for wineries is that it is probably too early in the season for smoke contamination to occur, which is not believed to affect wine grapes before the veraison process, in which small, green berries grow and they change color. Veraison generally does not occur in California until mid to late July.
Smart Pizza in Guerneville is providing free meals to evacuees.
