There were about 30 homes lost in my area (Auburn, California) this afternoon and evening - only about 275 acres, but fairly densely populated. I could see the smoke from about 15 miles away and got within two miles of the fire on my way home. The smoke was intense, but hasn't spread as far as I expected. My home is 10 miles northeast of the fire. I could see a lot of smoke at 5 PM, but very little at 8 PM.
I'm trying to find out if any friends lost their homes. So far, none. I was particularly concerned about a friend who lost his 19-yr-old son in June and totalled his car in July. He lives very close to the fire, but I think he's OK.
There's a retirement home in the fire area that I visit, and I haven't been able to find out if it escaped the fire.
Close, but we're safe. Makes me wonder how safe we are, since we have a lot of dry brush and trees in our area.

-Joe-