This archive report was first published on 28 October 2019.
California's governor, Gavin Newsom, declared a state-wide emergency on Sunday, October 27, 2019, as a huge blaze, the Kincade Fire, bore down on towns in the famed Sonoma wine region.
The fire, which has spread to 30,000 acres, has destroyed dozens of homes and vineyards, including the 150-year-old Soda Rock Winery, with its owners saying they are 'devastated'.
At least two hospitals in Santa Rosa evacuated patients over the weekend, and an estimated 180,000 people were under mandatory evacuation orders, including in parts of Santa Rosa and a large swath of Sonoma County.
More than 3,000 firefighters, backed by air tankers and helicopters, were battling to control the blaze, which was not expected to be contained before November 7, fire officials said.
California's largest utility, Pacific Gas & Electric Co., said it expected to turn off power to nearly one million customers across northern and central California, citing the high risk of fire.
Newsom hit out at the utility earlier this week, saying he was infuriated that a state such as California, with the fifth-largest economy in the world, had to endure blackouts.
