Geyserville, Calif. • A Northern California wildfire exploded in size early Thursday amid dangerous winds that prompted the state’s largest utility to impose electrical blackouts to prevent fires.
Authorities ordered the entire community of Geyserville to evacuate after the fire in the Sonoma County wine region north of San Francisco grew to more than 15 square miles. The town has about 900 residents and is a popular stop for wine country tourists.
The cause of the blaze wasn’t immediately known, but wildfire risk was extremely high as humidity levels plunged and winds gusted up to 70 mph.