Napa County's Crystal Fire 50% contained as first significant North Bay wildfire of 2024 raises alarm

A 60-acre wildfire erupted Wednesday afternoon northeast of St. Helena in the scar of the 2020 Glass Fire, burning heat-hardened grasses and threatening structures about seven miles from the town, near Deer Park, on the eastern slope of Napa Valley.

A second day of temperatures in the upper 90s and lower 100s primed the fuels for ignition and allowed the flames to spread quickly. The fire broke out north of Reverie II Vineyard & Winery in the 200 block of Crystal Springs Road, about six miles from the origin of the 67,484-acre Glass Fire that broke out on the 27th. September 2020.

But unlike that fire, which crossed the Napa Valley and swept through the Mayacamas Mountains to Santa Rosa a few hours later, the Crystal Fire experienced high heat without the extreme winds that caused catastrophic fires in the region and in western states in recent years.

There were no evacuation orders and no immediate reports of structural losses in the fire. Two firefighters affected by the heat were taken to the hospital, authorities said, but no other injuries were immediately reported.

Southwest winds are also expected to ease overnight, with humidity reaching 75 or 80 percent, aiding fire suppression efforts.

“It's windy here,” Cal Fire public information officer Jason Clay said from the scene of the fire Wednesday afternoon, “but it's not a dangerous wind at this point.” But we'll see how that develops as the afternoon moves into the evening.

More than 100 firefighters and heavy air cover rushed to the fire managed to push containment to 50% about three hours after the first report of flames and smoke at 1:40 p.m.

Yet, coming amid the first heat wave of the season, just days after the Corral Fire, which spans more than 14,000 acres near Tracy, exploded, the Crystal Fire rang alarm throughout the region, where the ghosts of previous fires loom.

“It’s scary to see this right next to the Glass Fire,” said Tiffany Turner, who drove from Calistoga to watch firefighters work from Silverado Trail Road.

“I wanted to see for myself if the wind was going to blow one way or another,” she said, pointing to the populated valley floor and the sparser hills to the east.

Shawna Moura, who lives below the fire front, less than a half-mile from where it started, said it was like “lightning striking twice.”

Moura grew up near Crystal Springs Road and said his parents' house narrowly escaped the glass fire. They weren't home when she learned of the wildfire. After evacuating her own home, she drove there to pick up their dogs, then notified several neighbors.

Around 5 p.m., a sheriff's deputy told her it was safe to return home, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m just really happy and grateful,” she said.

Clay said there were few roads in the fire area near Bell Springs Reservoir, hampering response efforts, which were already a challenge due to the rugged terrain. But he was not aware of any structural damage or destruction, although firefighters could be seen battling flames around a structure near Reverie II winery.

Other wine producers in the area include Amulet Estate and Viader Vineyards & Winery.

The Napa County Sheriff's Office issued evacuation warnings for several areas around the fire, but did not turn those warnings into orders.

Clay said the state fire agency has not yet reached its maximum staffing level for the year, but has 122 seasonal firefighters completing their academy, with plans to reach the maximum strength by June 17. By then, all 21 stations in the six-county Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit would have at least one fire truck ready.

Despite this, the Crystal Fire attracted at least 116 firefighters across 13 fire trucks, three hand crews, two bulldozers and other resources, as well as five retardant-dropping air tankers and two FIRE HAWK helicopters each capable of dropping 1 000 gallons of water. Local Sonoma County departments also formed a five-engine response team to fight the fire.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

“We had a very strong response with a lot of resources, and the fact that we managed to contain up to 50% is a good sign, but we will continue to work very hard to strengthen the containment lines and work to extinguish this fire inside the compound,” Clay said. “There will be a lot of work to do for all of those reasons.”

Reporters Edward Booth, Martin Espinoza and Madison Smalstig contributed to this story.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan (she/her) at 707-521-5249 or [email protected]. On X (Twitter) @MaryCallahanB.

You can reach editor Andrew Graham at 707-526-8667 or [email protected]. Follow him on X (Twitter) @AndrewGraham88.