Update at 11:45 PM says:
** Evacuation Order for Baker Subdivision is still in effect. The advisory for the area west of West Road, from Tomki to State Street HAS BEEN LIFTED.**
Update 9:15 p.m. -- According to Cal Fire Public Information Officer Patricia Austin, the fire is estimated at 900 acres and is 10 percent contained. The original estimate was 1,000 but it was lowered after "more detailed mapping."
A briefing from the agency is expected around 10 p.m.
Update 9:05 p.m. --
The Grade Fire has ballooned to 1,000 acres and is 10 percent contained, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said.
The report, which came around 8:30 p.m., was more than triple what Cal Fire reported an hour earlier. The fire’s spread, Cal Fire officials claimed, is mainly due to the increase in vegetation from the winter rains.
For those seeking shelter for the night, the American Red Cross is helping people get rooms. Those seeking shelter are advised t go to the Coyote Creek Casino to get a Red Cross voucher. If you need assistance,
call 1-866-272-2237.
Meanwhile, U.S. Highway 101 remains open to controlled traffic.
No casualties or structural damage has been reported.
Traffic was being controlled on Highway 101 and the northbound lanes were restricted to one lane.
The blaze was sparked by a vehicle that caught fire around 2:50 p.m. about 5 miles northwest of Redwood Valley, authorities said. Nearby brush caught fire and by 3:45 p.m. the blaze had grown to 50 acres amid temperatures in the mid 90s.