Crews battling a deadly wildfire that has gutted dozens of homes near California’s Big Sur coast looked forward to cooler weather to help them slow the flames on Monday as the blaze raged for an 11th day, burning most heavily in rugged, inaccessible terrain.
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A work crew from the California Conservation Corps Butte County Fire Center cuts a line on Black Mountain near the town of Tollhouse, Calif., while fighting a blaze Monday, Aug. 1, 2016.
Meanwhile in Fresno County, firefighters faced blistering heat as they worked to contain a blaze near the small town of Prather that forced hundreds of evacuations.
About 300 people were under evacuation orders from homes just outside the Sierra National Forest, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
The fire has been burning for 10 days, destroying 57 homes and threatening 2,000 additional structures.
A 65-square-mile wildfire in wilderness just north of Los Angeles was nearly fully contained as isolated pockets of vegetation burned.
The flames threaten about 2,000 structures, some of which are vacation homes, and 350 residents have been evacuated.
A wildfire north of scenic Big Sur near California’s Central Coast spread again overnight and has now charred more than 67 square miles.
More than 1,400 firefighters are battling a blaze in southwest Idaho that has grown to 66 square miles and destroyed a state-operated backcountry structure.
Just like authorities are prioritizing residents’ return to their homes, they’re also trying to clear the way for vacationers who planned to make their way to the scenic parks near the fire. “This thing really blew up, and I’ve never seen anything like it in the years that I’ve been” with the Bitterroot National Forest, spokesman Tod McKay said.
Firefighters have gained 50 percent containment of the fire that has burned about 22 square miles on private land and in Shoshone National Forest.
Flames destroyed six houses and mobile homes, two vehicles and several out-buildings at historic Hardscrabble Ranch, according to Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal officials.
The East Oregonian reports that columns of smoke rose Sunday after the blaze scorched about 500 acres along Interstate 84.
Officials are reporting 60 percent containment of an 8-square-mile wildfire sparked by lightning on a mountain in northwest Nevada.
Crews working around the clock kept a wildfire from growing after it damaged homes in California’s Central Valley.
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About 800 firefighters are battling the fires, which are roughly 40 percent contained.
