Two Firefighters Burned Fighting CA Wildfire

Oct. 28, 2019

One firefighter suffered significant burns and was airlifted to the hospital for treatment after battling the Kincade fire in Sonoma County on Sunday.

By Katie Dowd

Source San Francisco Chronicle

A house along State Highway 128 near Healdsburg, CA, is engulfed in flames by the Kincade fire on Sunday.

Two firefighters suffered burns while battling the Kincade Fire in Sonoma County on Sunday.

One firefighter suffered significant burns and had to be airlifted to UC Davis Medical Center to be treated, Cal Fire officials say. The other had relatively minor burns and was taken by ambulance to a burn center. No further information about their current conditions were available.

The injuries came on a tough day: Containment of the Kincade Fire dropped from 10% to 5% by Sunday evening as hurricane-force winds battered the area. On Sunday morning, a 102 mile per hour gust was recorded at Pine Flat Road in rural Sonoma County. A National Weather Service meteorologist said the day's sustained winds "officially broke Hurricane Force (78 mph)."

The fire now covers more than 54,000 acres and has destroyed 91 structures.

The Kincade Fire has reached the edge of the town of Windsor, but Cal Fire authorities said the fire line was holding steady there for now. Weakening winds should help with the fight.

"It looks like we have about a 24-hour window of favorable weather Monday into Tuesday," National Weather Service meteorologist Mark Walbrun said.

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