Rohnert Park proclaims local emergency in wake of Kincade Fire, power outage

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Thursday proclaimed a local emergency due to the Kincade Fire and PG&E’s Public Safety Power Shutoff.

The proclamation occurred at a special meeting at 9:30 a.m. in the Rohnert Park City Council chambers.

The 60-day emergency proclamation can be extended for 60-day periods, and when conditions improve, the supervisors can terminate the emergency.

The proclamation notes the fast-moving, wildland and urban fire that started Oct. 23 has burned 76,825 acres as of Thursday and has destroyed 282 structures, including 181 homes.

The proclamation also makes state and local mutual aid and state emergency funding available to the county.

Under the proclamation, the County Administrator’s Office has the authority to take all actions necessary to respond to PG&E’s de-energization of its equipment and the Kincade Fire. In addition, the County Administrator’s Office has the authority to decide whether county employees should be paid for not working Oct. 22-Nov. 4 due to the emergency from the Kincade Fire’s impacts.

The Board of Supervisors also approved establishing a $2.5 million Kincade Fire Disaster Fund to pay for the costs of the initial response to the fire. The state is expected to reimburse the county 75 percent of those costs since Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency proclamation in Sonoma County.