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2 School Districts In Fire-Damaged Lake County Reopening Monday

KELSEYVILLE (CBS SF) -- Two Lake County school districts will reopen Monday and a third is hoping to reopen by the end of next week, the Lake County Office of Education said Friday.

The Konocti and Kelseyville unified school districts will reopen Monday. Schools in hard-hit Middletown in south Lake County are hoping to reopen next week or by Monday Sept. 28.

The schools were closed as a result of the 73,700-acre Valley Fire, which started nearly a week ago and was 40 percent contained Friday. At least 585 homes were destroyed in the fire, and evacuation shelters were opened in Calistoga, Kelseyville and Clearlake.

MORE: Complete Wildfire Coverage

The Lake County Office of Education is informing displaced families they have a right under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act to enroll their students in the area where they are currently residing.

In a letter to Middletown Unified School District families, Superintendent Catherine Stone said a number of teachers, staff, principals and families have lost their homes.

Stone said the district is trying to find a way to provide bus service into the Middletown District for people who are staying in Clearlake and Kelseyville and other areas and want their students to continue attending Middletown schools.

Teams of counselors and mental health professionals will be on campus to help students deal with the trauma of the Valley Fire, Stone said.

Stone said there is a lot of smoke, soot and ash at the Cobb and Middletown schools, but the Minnie Canyon, Coyote Valley and Middle school campuses were not heavily affected.

"We are developing plans to bring the Cobb kids and their teachers into town until Cobb reopens. Our goal is to keep everyone together," Stone said in the letter to the families.

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