The fire really did grow faster than anyone could have guessed. I remember trying to keep track of the fire using several maps on the Internet, and being shown on news reports, which simply could not be altered fast enough to be of any use.
Of course, now there are several very good maps of the fire. Time does solve many crimes.
The one I found that was simply brilliant and really brought home the path and story of the fire was an Animation created at San Diego University. You can check this out (here)
I have also created (and continue to add to) a Google Earth file, which you can get (here). Again, this is a work in progress, not just for the fire, but for the entire novel.
As I have time, I will be adding to this area of the repository, so check back soon.
