Firefighters have made progress in the fight against a wildfire that ignited in Napa County next to Lake Berryessa Saturday afternoon, but that breath of good news comes hours after the flames ravaged eight homes.
The Steele Fire off of Arroyo Grande Drive and Steele Canyon Road in the Berryessa Highlands community has scorched 150 acres and is 65 percent contained as of Sunday afternoon, according to Cal Fire. In addition to destroying eight homes, the blaze damaged at least four other structures.
Late Saturday night and into the morning hours of Sunday, fire crews were able to inch closer toward halting the fire's forward spread as well as bolster lines, Cal Fire reported. Crews continued to gain the upper hand on the blaze throughout the day Sunday.
All roads in the Berryessa Highlands community were reopened at 2 p.m. Sunday, but Headlands Drive at the southern end of Westridge Drive remains closed, according to Cal Fire. Woodhaven Court also remains closed.
Evacuation orders remain in effect for the areas where roads remain blocked off, according to Cal Fire. All other evacuation orders have been lifted.
At least 185 fire personnel are battling the blaze on the ground and from the air, according to Cal Fire.
The Steele Fire is one of several destructive wildfires in California that thousands of firefighters are trying to gain control of. The state's largest blaze — the Carr Fire burning in Shasta County — has claimed the lives of at least six people and wiped out more than 500 structures. The fire has charred 89,194 acres and remains just 5 percent contained.
