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The so-called
Erskine Fire, which broke out on Thursday afternoon in the
foothills of Kern County about 42 miles (68 km) northeast of
Bakersfield, has exploded to char more than 30,000 acres, making
it one of the worst in an already intense fire season in
drought-stricken California.
The National Weather Service issued a "red-flag warning" for the
area at least into Saturday morning, forecasting high
temperatures, low humidity and gusty winds that could whip up
the blaze's intensity as it cuts through the bone-dry brush and
grass.
Three firefighters have suffered injuries related to smoke
inhalation while battling the inferno and hundreds of residents
were forced to flee their homes. California Governor Jerry Brown
on Friday declared a state of emergency for the county.
Officials said the 800 firefighters battling the blaze have been
able to draw containment lines around five percent of the
flames, and hundreds more personnel were en route to the area.
Some 1,500 homes remain threatened, according to fire
information website InciWeb.
To the south, firefighters were gaining control over a pair of
fires dubbed the San Gabriel Complex burning through foothills
and canyons in Los Angeles County. InciWeb said 30 percent of
the 5,260 acre fire had been contained as of Friday evening.
Authorities allowed to return home more of hundreds of residents
who were evacuated from the area after the fire sparked on
Monday morning. Evacuation orders for other communities
threatened by the flames remained in effect.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; editing by David
Stamp)
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