The Mosquito Fire, which has ripped through the foothills of the Sierra Nevada since last week, became California’s biggest blaze of the year on Wednesday.
The fire formed on September 6 and has moving eastward through arid mountainous terrain northeast of Sacramento, the state capital. It makes a sudden mutation on Tuesday, damaging or destroying several buildings.
By Wednesday night, it had grown to more than 63,000 acres, making it California’s largest for the 2022 season, said Kevin Tidwell, public information officer for the Mosquito fire.
It was 20 percent contained as of Wednesday night. In a phone interview, Mr Tidwell said cooler temperatures and higher-than-expected humidity over the next few days are likely to help fire crews, and mild southwesterly winds could push the flames and smoke out of nearby communities.
However, he added, the same winds could also provide the fire with fresh oxygen and propel it further east into the arid forests west of Lake Tahoe, where there are many potential saplings. .
“The problem is still extremely dry fuels,” he said.
Several evacuation orders and warnings have been issued effective on Wednesday for Placer and El Dorado Counties. Mr Tidwell said that although fire crews had made recent progress on the northern, western and southern slopes of the fire, the area was not yet safe enough for any of the more than 11,000 people. residents were evacuated back to their homes.
California’s Next Biggest Active Fire, the McKinney Fire, become the biggest state of the year at the end of July. As of Wednesday night, it was just over 60,000 acres and 99% contained.
