Updated 8 p.m. Oct. 18 with reporting from The New York Times
Today’s fire made national news: The New York Times posted a story (behind their paywall) at 9 p.m. about the blaze:
The five-alarm fire, which officials have named the Keller fire, had burned about 15 acres and damaged two homes in an Oakland Hills area, the Oakland Fire Department said. It came one day before the 33rd anniversary of the 1991 Tunnel fire, which killed 25 people and destroyed 3,000 homes several miles north of the current blaze.
More than two hours after the fire was first reported, officials began to express confidence that they were getting a handle on the situation. There were no reports of injuries, and Oakland Fire Department officials said that the forward progress of the wind-driven fire had been stopped.
Fire in Oakland Hills Prompts Evacuations Under Gusty Conditions, Oct. 18, Orlando MayorquÃn
Updated 7 p.m. Oct. 18 with new reporting from Bay City News
Forward progress was halted Friday afternoon on a large fire in the Oakland hills after burning two homes and triggering evacuation orders and power shutoffs.
Oakland fire officials announced the blaze at about 1:30 p.m. and said it burned about 13 acres in a neighborhood near Interstate Highway 580, Keller Avenue and Mountain Boulevard.
First reported as a grass fire, it was initially reported to have burned through four or five homes. The department later said two homes were impacted by fire and dozens were threatened but not damaged on Maynard, Sanford, Greenridge and Canyon Oaks.
The progress of the fire was arrested shortly before 4 p.m., the Oakland Fire Department announced on social media.
A spokesperson for PG&E said the utility worked closely with firefighters to make sure they could access the fire safely and had shut off power to 1,089 customers in the area.
There was no estimate for when the power might be restored.
All but one lane of westbound Highway 580 was closed for a period at Keller Avenue a result of the fire, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The effort to fight the fire involved more than 80 firefighters from the Oakland Fire Department, along with California Office of Emergency Services crews that were pre-positioned in Alameda County due to the recent high fire danger weather that’s expected to last through Saturday.
Cal Fire air support dropped water and/or fire retardant on the blaze, according to Oakland officials.
The dry conditions and expected wind gusts that prompted a multi-day Red Flag Warning came one day before the anniversary of the massive Oakland Hills Fire that started on Oct. 19, 1991.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
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The City of Oakland issued a mandatory evacuation order on Friday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. for neighborhoods near 580 and Keller Avenue / Mountain Boulevard in the Oakland Hills as a vegetation fire spread. As of 3:30 p.m. on Friday the fire had spread to 10 acres.
Zones in red are mandatory evacuation zones; yellow are in a warning area.
KTVU reported that the fire department was trying to put out several different spot fires as they popped up in the tree-lined hills above homes in the area. At least seven homes have been burned or damaged by the flames, according to the Oakland Fire Department via KTVU. (Editor’s note: The OFD later clarified that two homes were damaged and dozens threatened by fire.)
Per KCBS, all lanes are blocked on WB I-580 just east of Keller Avenue in Oakland due to the fire. Keller Ave. off ramp is closed as fire crews work on putting out the fire. Motorists should expect delays and plan an alternate route.
Plumes of smoke from the fire were visible from the Piedmont hills.
