Cal Fire crews on the scene at the Pickett Fire near Calistoga. [Cal Fire]
The Pickett Fire, which erupted Thursday afternoon near Calistoga, had quickly spread to more than 2,000 acres by early Friday, making it the largest fire faced this year by the Cal Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit.
By Friday afternoon, firefighters had contained about 5% of the blaze, which started Aug. 21 at 2343 Pickett Road. In addition to the 350 fire personnel on hand to fight the fire, suppression efforts have included three night-flying helicopters conducting water drops, eight dozers re-establishing fire-access roads, 53 engines, eight hand crews and four water tenders.
Fire officials said they’ve been particularly challenged in attempting to reach the edge of the fire, due to its burning in remote and un-populated areas with limited access. “Firefighter safety will be an emphasis,” the agency said, “with temperatures expected to reach into the upper 90s.”
The Sonoma County Health Officer today issued the following health advisory:
Areas of Sonoma County may experience poor air quality caused by the wildfire event in Napa County. People may experience adverse health effects from the smoke over Sonoma County and across the region. Below are some things you can do when the air quality is poor.
Keep yourself and others safe
- Check on friends, family and neighbors. Older adults, pregnant individuals, children and people with heart disease or respiratory illness are susceptible to elevated air pollution levels and should take precautions to avoid exposure.
- Smoke can irritate the eyes and airways, causing cough, a dry scratchy throat, runny nose, trouble breathing and irritated sinuses. Stay hydrated by drinking water during heavy smoke events.
- High temperatures can worsen effects of high Air Quality Index (AQI) events.
- Avoid adding additional air pollution by curtailing activities such as wood burning, lawn mowing, leaf blowing, driving, barbecuing, smoking or other dust-producing activities. Avoid using hairspray and painting indoors. If possible, use a stove fan when cooking.
Avoid poor air quality
- Shelter in place. Staying indoors where the air quality is better, with windows and doors closed, is the best way to protect your health. During high heat and heavy smoke events, keep indoor air cool.
- Set air conditioning units and car vent systems to recirculate to keep outside air from moving inside.
- Run your home or car air conditioner on recycle or recirculate. Keep the fresh air intake closed and the filter clean to prevent bringing additional smoke inside.
Check these air quality monitoring (AQI) resources to learn what the air quality is in the parts of the county in which you live and work:
- Purple Air: https://map.purpleair.com
- NSCAPCD: https://nosocoair.org/
- BAAQMD: https://www.baaqmd.gov/
- EPA: https://www.airnow.gov/
CAL/OSHA provides and regulates guidelines to protect workers from wildfire smoke. For more information, visit:
https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/Protection-from-Wildfire-Smoke/Wildfire-smoke-emergency-standard.html.
When checking the AQI, please note that federal-certified monitors at EPA’s AirNow Fires site are most accurate, but have an update lag of two to three hours.
Note that Sonoma County is a large county and the air quality will fluctuate in different parts of it due to a number of factors. It’s important to keep track of the air quality in your region and to take steps if it diminishes.
