Napa Valley workers harvest last fruits of season by night
YOUNTVILLE, Calif. - Mario Maldonado didn't wear a mask. The 22-year-old field laborer thought it would slow him down. Besides, he doesn't like to cover his face when he tends to the vineyards on most nights.
But this Napa Valley harvest was different than most. A muddied pinkish glow emanated from the horizon. A haze hovered in the air and through the vines. A motor hummed from a generator that powered brilliant lights mounted on tractors idling behind the pickers. It illuminated the harvesters' path and accentuated the fine ash and the dust swirling along with some moths.
About 10 miles west, the Nuns fire had already roared through more than 46,000 acres. A few miles to the east, the Atlas fire had decimated more
