Fire Update
The Grass Valley Fire is 85 percent contained, said spokeswoman Ramona DeGeorgio-Venegas.
If the weather holds, fire officials believe they will have full containment by Sunday night, she added.
But she doesn't expect evacuated residents to be allowed back anytime soon.
"There is still a huge amount of power lines and infrastructure that needs to be repaired before people can go back up," DeGeorgio-Venegas said.
The wildfire has burned 1,140 acres, destroyed 162 homes, damaged 20 and still threatens 6,000 more. Total cost of the fire is $3.65 million.
She drove around the area last night. In addition to the downed power lines, giant holes that were homes to trees still smolder, sometimes as deep as six-feet in the ground, she said.
"It's going to take a while before all of those hot spots are safe enough to let people in to work on the infrastructure," she explained. "People are chomping at the bit to go in and do their job but we can't let them in there until it's safe."
The Slide Fire is 35 percent contained, having burned 13,800 acres. It's cost $4.5 million to fight this fire.
"That's the one that is putting up all the smoke," DeGeorgio-Venegas said.
More than 10,000 homes are still threatened, she said.
The blaze destroyed 201 homes and three outbuildings.
-- George Watson