River Fire, Carmel Fire Updates: Containment Grows

MONTEREY COUNTY, CA — Finally some good news in Monterey County as both the River Fire and Carmel Fire continued to increase in containment as of Tuesday morning without an increased growth in size, according to Cal Fire.

The Carmel Fire, which has been burning for six days, has stayed at the same size as it was Tuesday night at 6,695 acres, but firefighters increased containment from 20 to 30 percent.

The River Fire, which has been burning for eight days, has also stayed the same at 48,424 acres and is 33 percent contained. Last night, the fire was 28 percent contained, according to Cal Fire.

The fires have not spread outside of the containment areas, but unburned vegetation inside the area will continue to burn, so smoke and flames will still be able to be seen.

As a result of the effective containment and cooperating weather, some evacuation orders and warnings were lifted Monday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.

However, the fires have not calmed down without leaving some destruction in the county. The River Fire has damaged eight structures and destroyed eight others. An additional 13 other minor structures were destroyed, and one was damaged.

The inspection for damage assessment is nearly 52 percent complete, according to Cal Fire, so that number may increase.

The Carmel Fire, though significantly smaller, has destroyed and damaged more structures. Thirty-five residences have been destroyed and five have been destroyed. In terms of other minor structures, 16 have been destroyed and seven have been damaged. Damage inspection is 54 percent complete.

Evacuation centers that assist residents with a variety of resources are open at the King City branch library and the Monterey Conference Center.

Evacuation shelters remain open for affected county residents at Carmel Middle School and Salinas Valley Fairgrounds.

Evacuees can also visit MontereyCo.recovers.org or call 211 for information or assistance.

For more information on evacuation zones, people can visit www.co.monterey.CA.US/2020FIRES. For assistance with animal evacuations, residents can call (831) 264-5455.

County residents can also register for evacuation alerts by visiting http://AlertMontereyCounty.org.

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