MENDOCINO CO., 10/19/26 – The Cooley Fire burning in rugged terrain west of Cloverdale increased to 1,365 acres and was 23 percent contained on Monday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.
The fire started at 5:05 p.m. Friday near Elkhorn and Cooley Ranch roads, just north of the Sonoma County line.
There have been no injuries in the fire, and no structures are threatened, fire officials said.
A dense marine layer blanketed area on Monday morning, but an increase in fire activity was expected in the afternoon as atmospheric conditions shifted, requiring firefighters to maintain heightened vigilance, Cal Fire said in an update.
The fire broke out near Cooley Ranch, south of Yorkville, where the Mendocino County Air Quality Management District had authorized two prescribed burns, TMV reported Friday: up to 850 acres in Unit 8 Friday and up to 500 acres in Unit 5 Saturday. Cal Fire lists the fire’s cause as under investigation.
A Cooley Fire Information Board is located in front of the Yorkville Post Office at 25400 CA-128, Yorkville.
Information will be updated daily, according to Cal Fire.
Well, they plan to burn 1350 acres They burn1365 acres and rains coming Wednesday. Perfect
Yes … but the area burned was not all within the prescribed area, the wildfire has required significant CalFire response and resources, and areas to the south outside Cloverdale, Healdsburg and west county have experienced dangerous air quality.
When I was a kid in the 60s, we had a 1000 acre ranch out dry creek road, just south of where this fire is .backThen there was about 25000 sheep out there and every fall We would drive around the ranch with my dad and the neighbors Ranchers, and everyone would light all the hills on fire. As far as you could see, all the way to Geyserville was smoke. we don’t have a problem of too many fires. We have a problem of lack of fires during the fall. When the forest will burn but not burn hot. The ranchers did the same things the Indians did. They lit the hills on fire every year.This fire never left. The ranch it was on, I think they did good.
Not perfect, and definitely a “learning opportunity” for all involved, especially the burn boss. But it’s no reason to haul out the pitchforks either – there’s an escape rate for a reason. It’s not an easy thing to execute well, consistently. Presumably the observed weather diverged a bit from the forecast they got the burn permit under??? But we’ve had immeasurably better weather to burn those acres under, than a rowdy wildfire-weather regime where a bunch of ignitions escape initial attack. Like a lightning bust followed by a hard east wind for days.
Anyway, celebrate getting a couple of sections burned under good conditions. Surely there’s a nasty drought following this, what, the 6th decent winter we’ll have had since 20/21?
Who is the idiot at Mendocino Air Quality who approved this at peak fire season? What the hell, this makes no sense!