Valley firefighters sent to massive King Fire

An engine and crew from Glen Ellen and two strike team leaders from Sonoma Valley have been sent to the 71,000-acre King Fire burning in El Dorado County near Pollock Pines.|

An engine and crew from Glen Ellen and two strike team leaders from Sonoma Valley have been sent to the 71,000-acre King Fire burning in El Dorado County near Pollock Pines.

As of noon Thursday, the blaze, which started Saturday, is only 5 percent contained.

Monday, a Glen Ellen engine with Capt. Matt Atkinson, engineer Japen Soto and firefighters Hugo Chairez and Joe Sevilla were sent as part of a strike team. Chief Peter Van Fleet said he hadn’t had contact with the engine on Thursday and wasn’t sure what the crew’s assignment was. Capt. Dan Pierce is also on a strike team as a strike team leader trainee.

Sonoma Valley Fire and rescue sent Division Chief Bob Norrbom and Capt. Sean Lacy to the blaze as strike team leaders.

Sonoma Valley Division Chief Spencer Andreis said the department has also sent its OES (office of emergency services) engine to the Weed fire in Siskiyou County, and has rented out an engine and crew to staff Cal Fire’s Glen Ellen station.

Officials have made an arrest in the King Fire. Thursday, Cal Fire said that its officers along with United States Forest Service officers and El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 37-year-old Pollock Pines man, identified as Wayne Allen Huntsman on charges of arson. Huntsman is being held on $10 million bail.

As of Thursday, more than 2,000 residences and more than 1,500 other structures were threatened. Some 3,000 residents have been evacuated.

Officials have closed Highway 50 from Pollock Pines to Riverton.

So far two people have been injured in the blaze.

There are almost 3,700 firefighters battling the rapidly expanding blaze. Cal Fire reports that 299 engines, 88 fire crews, 15 helicopters, 49 bulldozers and 68 water tankers are fighting the fire.

According to Cal Fire, the King Fire is burning in steep terrain in the South Fork of the American River Canyon and Silver Creek Canyon, north of the community of Pollock Pines. The fire nearly tripled in size making a run to the northeast yesterday of over 10 miles up the Rubicon Canyon toward Hell Hole Reservoir. Spot fires were observed up to three miles ahead of the fire front and have moved into Placer County.

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