URGENT! Volunteer and donate to support evacuees of the Kincade Fires in Sonoma

Since it ignited on Wednesday night, the Kincade Fire has burned over 66,000 acres (that’s more than twice the size of San Francisco) and prompted the largest evacuation in Sonoma County's history. Nearly 200,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, at least 96 structures have been destroyed, and 17 damaged, with over 80,000 threatened.

Now, more than ever, residents of Sonoma need our help. With major power-outages, raging fires, and mandatory evacuations, there's no shortage of work to be done or need for support.

Here are some ways you can lend a helping hand.

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Volunteer:

1. Volunteer at an evacuation center in Petaluma. Sign up for this opportunity on the DiveIn app or directly here.
2. Volunteer with the World Central Kitchen at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds to serve meals to evacuees.
3. Host evacuees for free through Airbnb

If you know of other volunteer opportunities, please submit the opportunity here or let us know directly via the chat on our contact page.

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Donate:

1. ‍Donate to the Latino Community Foundation's NorCal Wildfire Relief Fund, which is is supporting Latino and immigrant families by investing in Nuestra Comunidad and Corazón Healdsburg. Many of the most vulnerable evacuees are Latino immigrants and farm workers who live and work in the impacted area.
2. Donate to the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank, which is sending non-perishable food to evacuation centers, or donate directly to the Redwood Empire Food Bank in Santa Rosa.‍
3. Donate to the Community Foundation Sonoma County's ongoing Sonoma County Resilience Fund, which was started during the 2017 North Bay fires, to support long-term recovery efforts.
4. Donate to Red Cross Disaster Relief by visiting redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS, or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Sending food, clothing and household items is not currently needed.
5. Donate to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy's 2019 California Wildfires Recovery Fund. Cash donations are preferred, but you can also donate online here.
6. Sonoma County Animal Services does not currently need supplies, but monetary donations can be made here.

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Evacuation Shelters:

Napa Valley Expo
575 3rd St, Napa CA 94559

Sonoma County Fairgrounds
1350 Bennett Valley Rd, Santa Rosa
- Accepting evacuees and small animals, no large animals.

Marin County Fairgrounds
10 Ave of the Flags, San Rafael
- Opens at 8 a.m.

Petaluma Fairgrounds
100 Fairgrounds Dr, Petaluma
- Accepting large animals only, no evacuees

St. Mary's Cathedral
1111 Gough St, San Francisco CA 94109
*Open 8 am Monday, Oct. 28 - Friday, Nov. 1

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Source: SFGATE