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 The so-called Lowell Fire north of the state capital, Sacramento,
has injured four of the 2,277 firefighters battling it, according to
the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire).
One firefighter was hospitalized with serious burns, CalFire said.
Roughly a third of the 2,233-acre blaze was contained as of Tuesday
morning, with low humidity and high heat expected throughout the
day. Roads were closed and evacuation warnings were in place around
the fire, which was threatening about 1,800 structures, CalFire
said.
A 6,591-acre fire, dubbed the Wragg Fire, burning near Lake
Berryessa outside of San Francisco prompted mandatory evacuations
for some 200 residents on Tuesday afternoon after flames jumped
across a containment line, CalFire said. Several nearby roads were
also closed.
To the south, a 1,739-acre fire forced the evacuation of campgrounds
in the Sierra National Forest and threatened some 450 structures,
including homes and vacation cabins, according to the U.S. Forest
Service's InciWeb online fire information center.
The blaze, known as the Willow Fire and located north of the central
California city of Fresno, was only 5 percent contained as of
Tuesday morning, according to InciWeb.
Experts have predicted an unusually active and destructive wildfire
season in California as the state grapples with a fourth year of
crippling drought.
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In northwestern Montana's Glacier National Park, firefighters
managed to draw containment lines around roughly half of the
3,170-acre Reynolds Creek fire, according to InciWeb. Firefighters
were aided overnight by cooler temperatures and rain in the area.
The blaze broke out last Tuesday, forcing the closure of
campgrounds, a motor inn and several trails, as well as the
picturesque Going-to-the-Sun Road that bisects the park, officials
said.
Most of the park, which straddles the Canadian border, was
unaffected by the fire and remained open to the public, according to
officials.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Eric
Beech)
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