NAPA COUNTY, Calif. (NewsNation Now) — A rapidly growing wildfire in northern California is forcing evacuations in wine country and has already destroyed several homes.
The new fires erupted Sunday in the famed Napa-Sonoma wine region and in far Northern California’s Shasta County, forcing hasty evacuations of neighborhoods.
In wine country, flames engulfed the distinctive Chateau Boswell Winery north of St. Helena, The Black Rock Inn in the small community of St. Helena and multiple homes in the city of Santa Rosa, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Residents of a senior home were among those evacuated.
The Adventist Health St. Helena hospital suspended care and transferred all patients elsewhere, according to a statement on its website.
The wine country blaze had burned 17 square miles as of early Monday, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
Embers fly from a tree as the Glass Fire burns in St. Helena, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Noah Berger) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) 
ST. HELENA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 27: The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020 in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes. Much of Northern California is under a red flag warning for high fire danger through Monday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
According to NewsNation affiliate KRON-TV, there are three new fires burning in the North Bay area. The Glass Fire erupted Saturday night while the Shady Fire and the Boysen Fire broke out Sunday. The Shady Fire and the Boysen Fire, are believed to be spot fires of the Glass Fire. All blazes are burning near the Napa-Sonoma County line. Authorities reported zero containment.
Cameras show the flames picking up throughout the early morning Monday.
Earlier on Sunday, 65,000 California electric customers had their power shut off.
Red Flag Warnings were issued for much of the state on Monday. Winds were expected to gust up to 55 miles per hour in some areas. Temperatures in southern California were expected to be 10-15 degrees above normal.
So far this year, more than 8,100 California wildfires have scorched 5,780 square miles destroyed more than 7,000 buildings and killed 26 people.
Most of the losses occurred after a frenzy of dry lightning strikes in mid-August ignited a massive outbreak of fires.
Conditions were also hot, dry and windy in parts of Arizona, where the Sears Fire in Tonto National Forest north of Phoenix has grown to more than 14 square miles (36 square kilometers) since it erupted Friday afternoon.
Source: Fox 8 News Channel
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