Calif. (ABC) -The almost 1600 firefighters battling the Blue Cut wildfire east of Los Angeles in San Bernardino County made their biggest gain Thursday against the ferocious blaze: By Thursday night it was 22 percent contained, a sharp increase from a mere 4 percent containment at the start of the day, officials said.
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The Blue Cut fire is one of almost 30 major blazes reported to have scorched some hundreds of square miles in eight Western states this week, in the midst of a wildfire season stoked by prolonged drought and unusually hot weather, according to the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. The fire was 26 percent contained Friday morning, the AP said.
Gusty winds between 30 and 50 miles per hour are expected to continue in the area, and warnings of fire weather and excessive heat are stretching from Southern California to the Pacific Northwest due to the winds and low humidity, with some parts of Southern California have less than 5 percent humidity.
Ramps are also closed at Kenwood Avenue, Cleghorn Road and on the 138, according to Caltrans.
The 15 through Cajon Pass reopened after days of closure because of the fire, and some of the residents who were under mandatory evacuation orders have been allowed to return home.
Cars destroyed in the Clayton Fire are seen in Lower Lake, California, Aug. 15, 2016.
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No fire-related deaths have been reported so far.
