New mandatory evacuations as Orange County's Holy fire burns closer to some communities
Man suspected of setting the Holy fire is arrested as 18 wildfires continue burning across California.
The Holy fire in the Cleveland National Forest pushed closer to some homes Wednesday, prompting a new round of mandatory evacuations.
The fire, which has burned more than 6,000 acres, is forcing evacuations in McVicker, Rice Canyon, Horsethief, Glen Eden, El Cariso Village, Sycamore Creek, Sycamore Canyon and Rancho Capistrano, according to the National Forest Service.
The Ortega Highway corridor from Lookout Restaurant to Nichols Institute was also included in the evacuation order.
A man suspected of starting the fire has been arrested.
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Forrest Gordon Clark, 51, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of felony arson, one count of felony threat to terrorize and one count of misdemeanor resisting arrest in connection with the ignition of the Holy fire.
It was not immediately clear how the fire was set. Clark was arrested Tuesday, according to online jail records, and is being held on $1-million bond.
Susan Schroeder, the spokeswoman with the Orange County district attorney’s office, said they would receive the arson case later and would file criminal charges against Clark.
“We expect to bring him to justice for these terrible crimes,” she said.
He is slated to appear in court Thursday, records show. The Orange County district attorney's office and a public information officer for the Holy fire declined to comment.
The Holy fire, which was 5% contained as of Wednesday, broke out Monday and has destroyed 12 structures. Fire officials said the fire is burning toward Horsethief Canyon and McVicker Drainage.
Expected higher humidity and cooler temperatures could aid firefighters as they build containment lines around the blaze, which has ripped through chaparral and brush.
Eighteen wildfires that continue to burn across the state have scorched about 600,000 acres, an area nearly the size of Sacramento County.
The largest of the fires is the Mendocino Complex fire — made up of the Ranch and River fires. The Mendocino fire has burned more than 300,000 acres and is the biggest fire ever recorded in California. It was 47% contained as of Wednesday afternoon.
The blaze, while massive, has destroyed far less property than other recent fires. The wine country fires last year, for example, while smaller in size, killed more than 40 people and destroyed thousands of homes.
About 116 homes have been lost to the Mendocino Complex fire. The fire is still threatening 10,300 structures, fire officials said.
More than 4,000 firefighters are assigned to the wildfire, including 41 firefighters from Australia and New Zealand.
Steve Kaufman, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, said lingering smoke that has blanketed Lake County over the last two days has given firefighters a leg up in the battle.
High pressure and winds coming and going in opposite directions create an eddy of smoke, “kind of like a washing machine, just with smoke,” he said. “Fire doesn’t move a lot in those conditions.”
To the northeast of Clear Lake, the Ranch fire — the larger of the two fires — remained the most active. It grew by 10,000 acres over the last 24 hours and has scorched 251,166 acres and is 46% contained.
Fire officials are looking to build fire lines along or near the fire’s edge and keep it south of Snow Mountain Wilderness. They’re also looking to increase containment on the southern and southeast edges of the blaze to protect communities in those areas.
The River fire, burning southwest of Clear Lake, made no overnight movement. It has blackened 48,920 acres and is 81% contained.
Farther north, in Redding, the Carr fire continues to burn in steep terrain, consuming timber as firefighters continue to build fire lines ahead of the fire. The fire has burned 173,522 acres and is 47% contained.
The blaze has been responsible for seven deaths, including two firefighters and two children.
Meanwhile, near Yosemite National Park, firefighters were expected to make more progress on the Ferguson fire, which is at 94,992 acres and 43% contained.
The Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office reopened Yosemite National Park for residents only on Wednesday. Authorities reopened Tioga Road through the park, including the Toulumne Meadows Visitor Center, White Wolf Campground, Soda Spring, Tenaya Lake and Lembert Dome. Yosemite Valley remains closed.
Firefighters continue to create fire lines to protect homes in the Foresta and Yosemite West areas. While the fire is threatening those communities, the level of fire activity has been minimal, officials said.
The Ferguson fire is consuming vegetation in steep terrain and continues to burn between Big Oak Flat Road and El Portal Road as it moves toward the Cascade Falls picnic area. Stopping the fire in this area is critical to prevent it from advancing into Yosemite Valley and spreading to the south and north rims of the valley.
The wildfires raging up and down the state have made this year one of the worst fire seasons in California.
“We’ll see at the end if it will become the worst,” said Jonathan Cox, battalion chief and public information officer with Cal Fire’s communication office. “We’re pretty early on in peak fire seasons until we get rain. Each day that passes, the fire fuels will get drier.”
The effects of five consecutive years of severe drought in the state, a rise in bark beetle infestation and rising temperatures have led to historic levels of tree die-off and dry fuels throughout the state, creating an extreme fire danger.
Those conditions have led to larger and more destructive fires while making fire seasons longer. Firefighters pulled from one end of the state to another find themselves not only exhausted, but having to be away from their homes longer.
“The last few years have not been a season, it’s been all year long,” Kaufman said.
Fire experts worry the worst is yet to come as Southern California will soon see Santa Ana winds resurfacing and potentially creating fire threats while fires up north continue to burn.
“We’re hoping we can get control of the fires and get our crews off the fire lines, get them to rest before the next fire breaks out,” Cox said.
J Olsen, a firefighter with the Central Calaveras Fire Department, said the fires are a never-ending battle.
“It’s a marathon for us now,” he said. “It’s a marathon that just keeps getting longer and longer.”
“Every season I go into it thinking it’s going to be the worst season we’ve seen yet,” he added.
4:55 p.m.: This article was updated with new acreage for the Holy fire and comments from fire officials.
2:40 p.m.: This article was updated with new evacuations.
2 p.m.: This article was updated with wildfire updates and comments from fire officials.
This article was originally published at 12:10 p.m.
end quote from:
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-wildfires-california-20180808-story.html
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