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Schools, state parks reopen as Vistra battery fire begins to burn out

MOSS LANDING, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The Monterey County Board of Supervisor voted unanimously to pass the adoption to ratify the Proclamation of Local Emergency as a result of the Vistra Energy Fire. Two motions were also made by district 2 Supervisor Glen Church. More on the story here: kion546.com/news/monterey-county/moss-landing/moss-landing-storage-fire/2025/01/21/in-the-aftermath-of-the-moss-landing-power-plant-fire-the-community-rallies-and-the-county-responds/

The resolution states that the fire caused "conditions of extreme peril to the safety of person and property nearby." After the fire broke out on January 17, a slew of precaution were put in place from evacuation orders being issues to road and school closures.

Concerns about the air also began to be raised as those in Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties were urged to stay inside and keep their air ventilation systems off. While the proclamation was signed on January 17, the board needs to approve the resolution.

NMCUSD reopens all schools, Wastsonville post office reopens

North Monterey County Unified School District reopened their schools on Tuesday, January 21 as all evacuation orders have been lifted

Person protective equipment (PPE) are available to all students and staff along with inside spaces for student with health concerns.

Elkhorn Slough Reserve reopening Wednesday State Park reopen

The Elkhorn Slough Reserve is reopening on Wednesday, January 22. the Reserve had closed since January 17 following the Moss Landing Power Plant battery storage fire due to evacuation orders and potential health risks.

The decision comes as those returning to their homes can return to outdoor activities. Those heading to the Reserve should be aware that the trail at Kirby Park remains closed due to storm damage.

Three North Monterey County Parks have reopened as will including Moss Landing State Beach, Salinas River State Beach, and Zmudoski State Beach.

Updates on Fire Containment and Monitoring

Incident command on scene has reported that there have been no visible flames in the last 48 hours with no smoke in the last 24 hours. Fire crews are standing by to make sure another flare-up does not occur.

A flare-up occurred on Friday afternoon before dying down once again. The Vistra battery facility remains offline as the batteries continue to burn off.

Water testing expected after Vistra battery facility fire, county environmental health says

The County of Monterey announced Highway 1 in the Moss Landing area will reopen in both directions days after a fire broke out at the Vistra battery facility.

The county says the Highway will reopen around 5 p.m.

Dolan Road will remain closed, with no estimated time for reopening suggested for now.

The reopening comes after the Highway was shut down since January 16 because of a fire at the Vistra battery facility, causing concerns about potentially dangerous air quality from the type of batteries burning on site.

The Monterey Bay Air Resources Board, Environmental Protection Agency and Monterey County Environmental Health each tell KION air quality is good at this time.

Environmental Health officials say testing on the water in the area is set to begin this week, possibly Tuesday at the earliest.

"The water isn't something that's as much of a concern right now," says Marni Flagg with the County of Monterey's Environmental Health team. "The air quality was the paramount monitoring concern so that's where all of the efforts are focused."

MBARD says they want to sit down with Vistra to discuss improvements that could be made at the site to prevent fires like this from happening, plus to improve monitoring systems in place.

"We would like to discuss, perhaps, a more robust monitoring network at the fence line," says MBARD Air Pollution Control Officer Richard Stedman. "We want to not only look at particulate matter pollutants but other toxic pollutants of concern. I should say most of those pollutants would be a concern for people fighting the fires in those very hazardous conditions."

Vistra released a statement to KION on Sunday night, saying there's no active flame.

Personnel conducted onsite inspections this morning and while some small pockets of smoldering were observed, there was no active flame.  The condition at the site is contained, and the work of the response team has been successful in improving the situation.
Crews will continue to monitor the site in coordination with local fire officials.  Our top priority remains ensuring the safety of the community and first responders.
Air quality monitoring conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency and independent, third-party air quality experts continues to demonstrate that the site and surrounding area is safe and does not pose a risk to the public. Air quality monitoring is ongoing and will continue throughout the response.
Vistra strives to operate with transparency and to be a good neighbor in the communities in which we operate. We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as response efforts progress.  In support of this, a website has been established to share operational updates and to make additional information available to the public at www.mosslandingresponse.com/.

The Moss Landing energy site remains closed as a result of the fire.

This is a developing story

EPA, Vistra monitoring air quality as the Moss Landing Vistra battery facility continues to burn

The Moss Landing Power Plant Vistra battery facility continues to burn as state and county officials gave a press conference with updates over fire concerns.

The fire broke out at 3 p.m. on Thursday, January 16 at the site of the Vistra battery facility, one of the world's largest battery storage facilities. A flare-up had also broke Friday afternoon. The fire is appearing to burn itself out despite the smoke.

County of Monterey has an incident line operating for residents who may have questions or concerns pertaining to the fire. Those with concerns can call 831-796-8700.

County, State Officials, EPA and Vistra answer questions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUpLTvhklLA

On Saturday, state and county officials were joined by Brad Watson of Vistra Energy and Olivia Trombadore of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to update with the latest concerns on the Moss Landing Power Plant.

EPA's On-Scene Coordinator Trombadore was called to the site to begin monitoring the area for any environmental impacts to the air. While the air is remains a concern, another concern involved potential toxic chemicals going into nearby water sources.

"Right now, we are only doing air monitoring. We were brought into the area with that request specifically. We're currently focused on the immediate risk to the public," Trombadore said.

North County Fire Chief Joel Mendoza spoke about the flare-up from Friday.

"We will get high intensity fire and it'll die down overnight, when it cools off and then, during the day, it'll intensify," Chief Mendoza said. "This is normal for battery fires for lithium ion batteries."

Church has expressed his concerns and doubts over the fire and the facility itself. Church came into office after the installation of the Vistra battery facility.

"I'm cautiously optimistic that the worst of this is over," Church said. "I do want to make it clear I am concerned about the long-term, I'm really concerned. I have a lot of doubts right now of where we are at with this technology."

As for the benefits seen from the battery facility for the county.

"I think the benefits need to be weighed with the risks at this point," Church said. "I'm not at this position right now to go through and wanna weigh the benefits and the risk and exactly were they are."

Vistra Energy's Senior Director of Community Affairs Brad Watson was also on hand talking about the next steps into investigating what occurred.

"We will do all we can, as I said, humanly possible for a high probability that it will not happen again," Watson said.

Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) said that while she and Church were they are working to make that it is safe for those living near the fires. Both were elected into their respective positions after the Tesla battery fire in 2022.

"One of the reasons you're hearing from us right now that we need a full investigation, we need to pause operations is that we are here now," Addis said. "We are working hand in glove and its why we've come out so strong on this."

Addis also reiterated the needs for a guarantee on not only for the facility to be safer, but to be safer for those in the area.

"We need to know that weren't not going to have so many questions around 'What is the air quality?' 'What is the water quality?' 'How did this happen?' And not be able to come to the table, number one, with answers and accountability right here, right now. But also with preventative mechanisms going into the future," Addis said.

Air quality being monitored

According to the County of Monterey, the number of air monitoring sites have increased as there has been misinformation shared about the the current air quality in and around the fire area.

Vistra began monitoring the air from in and outside of the plant testing for hydrofluoric acid at 4 p.m. Thursday, an hour after the fire began. The reports indicate that the levels for hydrofluoric acid were non-detectable.

Monterey Bay Air Resources District (MBARD) is also monitoring the area site and have not found anything out of the ordinary in air quality conditions that are normal for this time of year.

"It appears that there was good dispersion or dilution of smoke from the fire and the plume was elevated above populated areas traveling towards Watsonville and Santa Cruz County. Based on the elevated plume and particulate matter monitor and sensor data, smoke from the battery fire did not impact ground-level areas where people live," MBARD Air Pollution Control Officer Richard A. Stedman stated in a press release.

Monterey County Sheriff's Office continues to patrol the area surrounding the fire and will be enforcing road closures. Drones from the Sheriff's Office are also evaluating the situation.

Evacuation orders now lifted

Evacuation orders have been lifted in regard to the Moss Landing Power Plant fire.

Monterey County Sheriff's Office had issued Evacuation Orders for areas Moss Landing South of the Elkhorn Slough, North of Molera Rd and Monterey Dunes Way, and West of Castroville Boulevard and Elkhorn Road to the ocean.

The Castroville Recreation Center is being demobilized as a temporary evacuation point as residents are able to return home.

Officials, Vistra speak during a live presser from Moss Landing

County of Monterey District 2 Supervisor Glen Church and California Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) were available to answer questions at the Vistra facility in Moss Landing earlier this afternoon. Both were joined by were joined by Vistra Energy's Director of Community Affairs Brad Watson.

"We want a commitment that the battery storage unit is going to stay offline," Assemblymember Addis said. "And that the community will get the information that they need to let them know not that it is safer, but that it is completely safe."

Addis cited that the community needs reassurance that is safe before it can return online.

"I'm quite aware this is a technology of the future and is really important for how we go ahead and deal with a whole range of issues from climate change to just the way we move forward in sustainability," Supervisor Church said.

Church said that the project itself was a one billion dollar investment. The flare-up also added to the growing concern about how long the fire is going to last.

"We were in a briefing with incident command and as you know, different batteries start to catch on fire. We were told that that's where the flare ups come from, so that it is expected that the fires will grow and that the fires, the flames will grow, the flames will get smaller. The hope is that they burn themselves out quickly so that this incident ends," Addis said.

Watson of Vistra said that the company will be investigating and inspecting the building once they done.

The fire broke out at the Vistra Energy Corp. lithium battery storage facility on 3 p.m. on Thursday afternoon.

"It's going to take weeks. There's not going to be anything sudden about it. it will be methodical. there will be a process and ultimately there will be a mutual agreement that those facilities are safe to return to operation," Watson said.

They also went on to say that while technology has many benefits, Watson stated "No technology is perfect."

Moss Landing Power Plant Vistra battery fire broke Thursday afternoon

Heavy black smoke was seen coming from the Vistra Energy side of the power plant around 3 p.m. As of 10 pm from County of Monterey Emergency Operations Center, 40 percent of the building with batteries burned.

The last time a fire occurred at the Moss Landing Power Plant was on Sept. 20, 2022 at the Tesla Power Storage facility.

Fire crews are on site monitoring the on the ground and in the air with drones to see the extent of the damage. No fire suppression is being taken place as batteries must burn out themselves with no water being used.

WATCH: Moss Landing storage fire update and follow-up notes

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) -- Press Conference from 10 a.m., County of Monterey Below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z10K47ii5C8

Vistra Corp. Responds to the Fire

The building and facility had been evacuated before the fire continued to spread. Vistra Corp. released a statement to KION:

"There is an ongoing fire at our Moss Landing Power Plant site. Our top priority is the safety of the community and our personnel, and Vistra deeply appreciates the continued assistance of our local emergency responders. 

Earlier this afternoon, Vistra personnel called for assistance from the North Monterey County Fire District after a fire was detected in the 300-MW Phase I energy storage facility at the Moss Landing Power Plant site. All site personnel were safely evacuated.     

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but an investigation will begin once the fire is extinguished." 

State Officials Respond to the Fire

Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) responded to the fire in the following statement:

"The safety and wellbeing of our communities remain my number one priority. I am closely monitoring the fire in Moss Landing and its effects on surrounding areas. I am in open communication with local and state agencies to ensure our community and our first responders have the resources they need. I am deeply concerned and have serious questions about the safety of this battery energy storage plant. I will be looking for transparency and accountability for why this happened again at Moss Landing. I am exploring all options for preventing future battery energy storage fires from ever occurring again on the Central Coast."

U.S Representative Jimmy Panetta also release a statement on the fire:

"We are monitoring the fire in Moss Landing and in contact with first responders and the compromised battery storage facility. We ask residents to stay alert, follow the directions of emergency services, and stay safe. Clean energy facilities have a responsibility to be operated safely and to protect the surrounding communities. I urge this battery facility to be transparent and cooperate with authorities to address this emergency situation swiftly."

Road closures in effect near Moss Landing

County of Monterey Public Works has also listed road closures that are in effect around the Moss Landing area including:

  • 516 Dolan Road (Pick-n-Pull)
  • Highway 1 at Struve Road
  • Highway 1 at Potrero Road
  • Moss Landing Road North at Highway 1
  • Elkhorn Road between Kirby Rd and Waugh Road, Elkhorn Road and Hall Road, at Castroville Blvd, at
  • Bayview Road.
  • Hidden Valley Road at Elkhorn Road
  • Paradise Road at Walker Valley Road
  • Russo Road at Dolan Road
  • Strawberry Road at Elkhorn Road
  • Trafton Road at McGowan Road
  • Trafton Road at Salinas Road
  • Walker Valley Road at Elkhorn Road
  • Dolan Road at Castroville Boulevard
  • Moss Landing Road at Sandholdt Road.
  • Dolan Road at Via Tanques.
  • Moss Landing at Highway 1 at the corner of Whole Enchilada

Alternate routes are being recommended by CHP Monterey as posted on their account on X formerly known as Twitter.

Those routes are:

  • Highway 156
  • San Miguel Canyon
  • Hall Rd.
  • Salinas Rd
  • San Juan Rd.
  • SR-129.

Monterey, Santa Cruz counties tell residents to stay indoors

Santa Cruz County Public Health and Monterey County Health have urged residents via an alert to stay indoors, close all windows, and turn of their air ventilation systems.

They also advise those looking for information to look toward social media for additional updates.

This is a developing story.

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Sergio Berrueta

Sergio Berrueta has been in the news for quite awhile going from studying print media to entering the realm of broadcast.

Originally from Bell Gardens, California, in Southeast Los Angeles. Berrueta started his professional news career in Eureka as a newscast producer for North Coast News (now The Northstate’s News) at KAEF ABC 23 in 2022. He pivoted a year later in 2022 going from behind-the-scenes to in front of the camera as a multimedia journalist for Redwood News Channel 3 (KIEM/KVIQ) also in Eureka.

Berrueta studied journalism at Humboldt State University (now Cal Poly Humboldt) earning his Bachelor’s Degree. Berrueta was a staff writer, page editor, social media manager and editor-in-chief of the university’s El Lenador, the only bilingual publication in all of Humboldt County.

Before moving to the North Coast, Berrueta had earned his Associate’s Degree at East Los Angeles College in 2019 after beginning his educational journey in 2012. He also was on staff for the ELAC’s publication, ELAC Campus News, having been a staff writer, page editor, and online editor.

Outside of news experience, Berrueta has also been in education as an AmeriCorps tutor in East Hollywood from 2017 to 2019 and served in a government role as a National Hometown Fellow for Lead for America with the City of Arcata in 2021.

When not focusing on news, Berrueta is an avid amateur cinephile having written about films in free time. He also writes poetry, attempting to get through a backlog of video games, enjoys visiting new places along the California Coast, and trying to keep up with the latest music and podcasts.

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