At its height, the blaze, which authorities called uncannily fierce, had forced authorities to order more than 80,000 residents to evacuate their homes.
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Firefighters had a Southern California wildfire mostly surrounded on Saturday, allowing thousands of evacuated residents to return to their houses as another fire further north moved perilously close to the historic Hearst Castle, officials said. After staying in a hotel with her sister, she arrived at the evacuation centre to join her neighbour.
The Blue Cut fire is one of almost 30 major blazes that have burned some 530 square miles in eight Western states this week, as prolonged drought and unusually hot weather has intensified wildfire season, the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho said.
“It’s looking very good, we took the offensive last night into today”, Brad Pitassi, a spokesman for the multi-agency fire command that started managing the fire Wednesday night, said Friday.
More than 1,200 firefighters are battling the 6-square-mile blaze that started August 13 and spread to the community’s downtown area and many residential neighborhoods.
A preliminary assessment found 96 homes and 213 outbuildings were destroyed by the blaze.
The fire was 68 percent contained Saturday.
Johanna Santore was out running errands when the fire erupted, and then tried to “rescue the family’s four dogs, six cats and hamster but was blocked by closed roads”, as The Associated Press reported.
A group of animal rescue volunteers found the house in smoldering ruins – with no signs of the pets.
“I’m actually feeling numb”, said Santore, who fled with her husband and granddaughter to an evacuation centre.
Meanwhile, a new fire broke out in rural Santa Barbara County, quickly surging to about 600 acres and prompting the evacuation of a pair of campgrounds.
Fire officials say the fire, which grew to more than 26 square miles since it ignited a week ago, is about 3 miles from the hilltop estate overlooking the Central Coast. The castle, a popular tourist attraction that houses a large art collection belonging to media magnate William Randolph Hearst, stopped giving tours due to heavy smoke, said California State Parks spokeswoman Gloria Sandoval.
The number of personnel battling the blaze continues to increase, with the tally exceeding 2,600 on Friday, according to officials.
Crews are also reporting progress containing an arson fire that has destroyed nearly 200 homes in the community of Lower Lake. Some evacuation orders were lifted Friday.
Long-awaited damage assessments were expected to be released Friday afternoon, he said.
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More damage might be discovered as firefighters pore through the aftermath of the fire that has burned 58 square miles about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.
