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Evacuation orders in the area of the Corral Fire near Tracy were reduced to warnings as of Sunday evening as the fire east of Livermore held at 14,168 acres and 50% containment, according to Cal Fire.
“Firefighters have made good progress constructing and improving control lines,” Cal Fire said on social media earlier Sunday afternoon.
Nearly 400 firefighters assisted by air tankers are fighting the fire, which started near Livermore National Laboratory Site 300 on Saturday afternoon (June 1). Cal Fire said strong winds and dry grass have made the fire difficult to contain.
Interstate 580 was closed from I-205 to I-5 overnight and most of the morning, but lanes in both directions started to reopen early Sunday afternoon and by 7:30 p.m. the California Highway Patrol reported that the freeway was fully reopened.
People in neighborhoods southwest of Tracy were under an evacuation order for nearly 24 hours. With the orders downgraded to warnings by 6 p.m. Sunday, residents were advised to remain vigilant and prepared for potential changes. Cal Fire said road closures would continue to be enforced for nonresidents on South Corral Hollow Road and Chrisman Road south of I-580.
The Corral Fire was first reported about 2:30 p.m. Saturday east of LLNL’s Site 300. The wind-whipped wildfire swelled to 10,000 acres by 11 p.m. before growing to 12,500 acres by Sunday morning and 14,000 by early afternoon, according to Cal Fire reports.
Two Alameda County firefighters were hospitalized for treatment of minor to moderate burns Saturday, said Cheryl Hurd, a spokesperson for the department.
The cause of the fire wasn’t immediately determined, Hurd said. She noted that the Corral Fire was not a result of the controlled burn that occurred in the area earlier in the week.
Site 300, covering 7,000 acres about 15 miles east of Lawrence Livermore’s main site, is part of the laboratory’s nuclear weapons stockpile stewardship program, according to its website. The facility assesses the operation of non-nuclear weapon components through hydrodynamic testing and tests new conventional explosives for use as part of the nuclear stockpile, the laboratory said.
Editor’s note: Embarcadero Media Foundation East Bay editorial director Jeremy Walsh contributed to this story.
