User:Penitentes/Nuns Fire

The Nuns Fire was a large and destructive wildfire in Northern California's Napa and Sonoma counties in October 2017. The fire formed from the merger of multiple smaller fires during a downslope windstorm on October 8. The fire burned 56556 acres, destroyed more than 1,300 structures, and killed three people.

The Nuns Fire was the largest of multiple major wildfires in the North Bay area. [total losses]

The footprint eventually referred to only as the Nuns Fire technically comprised six fires:

Nuns, Oakmont/Pythian, Norrbom, Adobe, Pressley and Partrick Fires

Partrick Fire started by ember from Adobe Fire

https://web.archive.org/web/20180117193901/http://cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/incidents/incidents_details_newsreleases?incident_id=1868

Background
The winter prior to the Nuns and other North Bay area fires delivered substantial rainfall to Northern California, promoting the growth of grasses that later dried and became fuel.

However, the primary cause of the wildfire outbreak that included the Nuns Fire was a strong Diablo wind event on October 8–9.

A weather pattern conducive to wildfires was well forecast by the National Weather Service up to one week in advance of the event. The Storm Prediction Center alluded to the possibility of critical fire weather conditions, stemming from offshore winds and low relative humidity, as early as October 3. The National Weather Service office for San Francisco and Monterey Bay issued a fire weather watch on October 5, which was upgraded to a red flag warning the following day.

Cause
Cal Fire investigators determined that the Nuns, Adobe, Partrick, and Norrbom fires all separately began when trees struck powerlines. They determined that the Pythian Fire began when PG&E attempted to re-energize an already-downed powerline. All the involved powerlines but for the Nuns Fire were operated by PG&E. Cal Fire investigators did not find that PG&E had violated state code on brush clearance or equipment maintenance in the case of the Nuns Fire ignition, but they did find such evidence in the case of the Norrbom, Partrick, Pythian, and Adobe fires, with which the Nuns Fire eventually merged and superseded in name.

Progression
The Nuns Fire originated east of Glen Ellen along Nuns Canyon Road—from which it received its name—near California State Route 12. Firefighting resources were dispatched at about 11:11 p.m. PST. Concurrently, a remote automated weather station nearby measured sustained winds of 17 mph with gusts up to 45 mph.

The Nuns Fire merged with the Norrbom Fire overnight on October 11–12,  with the Adobe Fire on the morning of October 12, and the Partrick Fire overnight on October 12–13.  On October 16, the Nuns Fire—then 51512 acres and 53 percent contained—merged with the Oakmont Fire, which had burned 1029 acres and was 16 percent contained. By October 22, the Nuns Fire was 90 percent contained. Evacuation orders were rescinded for Glen Ellen that same day, allowing residents to survey damage to their properties. The Nuns Fire was pronounced fully contained on October 31, with the containment of the Tubbs and Pocket fires announced simultaneously.

Effects
The Nuns Fire led to the deaths of three people. Two of them—residents of Glen Ellen and Bennett Ridge respectively—were caught in the fire itself, and the third fatality was a water tender driver who died in a crash during the fire suppression effort.

The Nuns Fire destroyed 1,355 buildings and damaged an additional 172. The fire particularly devastated northern and western portions of Glen Ellen, the Press Democrat describing it as having "leveled entire blocks". Multiple homes also burned in the western fringes of Kenwood. Glen Ellen lost 183 homes, Kenwood 140. As of 2024, the Nuns Fire remains the thirteenth most destructive wildfire in California's recorded history.