The South Coast Air Quality Management District and Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District have issued smoke advisories for the Mojave Desert Area.
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Firefighters have made major progress against a forest fire burning in Southern California’s San Bernardino Mountains.
A fire that has scorched almost 8,000 acres in the mountains of San Bernardino County in California is now 64 percent contained, officials said Wednesday.
Onlookers watch helicopters collect water from Papoose Lake to battle a wildfire in Lake Arrowhead, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2016. The fire has spread to a rocky area above the small residential community on the north side of Lake Arrowhead, and it continued to creep down toward the community.
The Cold Fire burning in Yolo County east of Napa County’s Lake Berryessa is 90 percent contained as of Tuesday morning, according to Cal Fire.
“We started yesterday afternoon, basically just opening up to firefighters, police personnel working the fire”, said Kaitlyn Cole, manager of the Chipotle restaurant on Mariposa Road in Hesperia, just off the 15 Freeway.
The Clark County Department of Air Quality said the air was unhealthy for sensitive groups, including young children, senior citizens and people with respiratory problems and cardiac disease.
The fire off state Highway 128 west of Winters began August 2, has burned 5,731 acres and destroyed one structure.
Meanwhile, California’s biggest wildfire expanded to more than 104 square miles north of scenic Big Sur.
There are now 842 firefighters assigned to this fire, including 91 engines, 15 water tenders, 14 crews, 11 dozers, 8 helicopters, 8 air tankers, including the VLAT assigned.
Thousands of firefighters remain on the lines of the fire, which is not expected to be fully contained until the end of the month.
Long-suffering residents of Palo Colorado who had been under evacuation orders since late July were finally being allowed to return. Mandatory evacuation orders are in place for a number of areas and voluntary evacuations have extended to Lake Arrowhead.
Authorities have traced origins of the blaze to an illegal campfire left unattended in a state park about a 1.5 kilometres from Highway 1.
Flames from a wildfire rise up a ridge in Hesperia, Calif., Tuesday.
A jet tanker drops retardant on a wildfire along Highway 173 in Hesperia, Calif. on Monday, Aug. 8, 2016.
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This year through August 6, Cal Fire has battled 3,642 California wildfires that burned 92,890 acres.
