Four firefighters were injured Saturday as wildfires spread across California and forced evacuations, officials said. At it’s start, it was 50 acres, but grew to 400 by 4p.m. It was over 10,000 acres after 6:30 p.m. The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Cal Fire have issued a mandatory evacuation order for the communities of Cobb, Loch Lomond, Harbin Hot Springs and Hidden Valley Lake. The firefighters were reportedly airlifted to a nearby hospital, but their conditions were not immediately released. Cal Fire PIO Daniel Berlant said that the dry conditions due to the drought are why these California wildfires are spreading so fast.
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“There hasn’t been anyone flying today, the smoke has socked us in”, said Bud Englund, a Cal Fire public information officer in Plymouth.
Bright orange flames burning in the hills were visible from the edge of town in San Andreas, a community of 2,700 people who were all told to evacuate briefly Friday before the fire moved in a favorable direction and they were told they could stay put, for now.
Zagaris added that people in and around the areas affected by the California wildfire should “be prepared to leave in a moment’s notice”.
An explosive and erratic wildfire grew to more than 100 square miles in Northern California on Saturday, threatening thousands of structures and forcing hundreds of people into evacuation centers.
Stout was ordered from her house Friday afternoon, and for the first time since her husband’s death in March, she drove their recreational vehicle to safety in Angels Camp, a quaint town made famous by Mark Twain’s “The Celebrated Tale of the Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”.
More than 2,900 firefighters were on the front lines of the blaze on Saturday, with containment listed at 29 percent, officials said.
Mohler says crews hope the cooler weather expected later Saturday can help them tame abnormal behavior by the flames.
“The injuries of the firefighters are a sad reminder of the dangers faced in this year’s fire season”, Berlant said.
“There are a lot of homes there, but they’re spread pretty far and wide”, she said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. The fire was 10 percent as of Saturday, according to CalFire. In an effort to save the trees, firefighters have been clearing lines with bulldozers around the Grant Grove and putting up sprinklers.
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Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for the blaze burning in both Calaveras and Amador counties, helping to free up funding and resources in the firefight.
