Chico, California.- Firefighters made progress Saturday in battling California’s biggest wildfire of the year ahead of thunderstorms that could unleash erratic winds and lightning that could spark fires and undermine gains made last week.
Hot, dry conditions pose similar threats across the wildfire-affected Western United States.
“We’re not completely out of the woods yet, but we’re doing very, very well,” Mark Brunton of the California Department of Fire Rescue said in a video update Saturday. “This is moving at a very rapid pace.”
The Park Fire, which has become the fourth-largest wildfire on record in California, was 27 percent contained by Saturday morning. Brunton said relatively milder weather in recent days allowed firefighters to create containment lines.
But warmer weather, fuel and terrain will continue to pose challenges for the 6,500 firefighters battling the blaze, which has spread more than 626 square miles (1,621 square kilometers) since it was reportedly started deliberately in a park in the Sierra Nevada foothills east of the Sacramento Valley city of Chico. By comparison, the city of Los Angeles is 503 square miles (1,302 square kilometers).
Firefighters will also begin removing damaged infrastructure in some areas on Saturday to allow residents to return to their homes.
The fire started at low altitude, where it quickly spread through thick grass and oak trees, destroying at least 567 structures and damaging 51 so far. As it has risen, it has reached vegetation with a greater concentration of trees and brush, the California Department of Fire said.
The fire’s northward advance has taken it into the rugged volcanic rock landscape surrounding Lassen Volcanic National Park, which has been closed due to the threat.
After a brief respite, firefighters are now bracing for dangerous hot and dry weather conditions, along with expected thunderstorms with possible lightning and gusty winds.
Collapsing storm clouds can generate winds that blow in all directions, said Jonathan Pangburn, a fire behavior analyst for the California Department of Fire. “Even if there’s no actual lightning, it’s an environment for our firefighters to be extremely cautious in,” he said.
The Park Fire is one of nearly 100 large fires burning across the western United States. Evacuation orders were in effect for 28 of them, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
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