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| Photo Credit: AP. |
A wildfire that has ravaged Yosemite National Park got worse Saturday, prompting evacuations.
Firefighters have been battling the wildfire that burned to the edge of a grove of giant sequoias.
The Oak Fire
began Friday afternoon southwest of the park near Midpines in Mariposa County, The
Associated Press reports. The blaze quickly grew to 10.2 square miles (26.5
square kilometers) by Saturday morning, The Associated Press cited a statement
from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protections, or Cal Fire.
“Explosive
fire behavior is challenging firefighters,” Cal Fire said in a statement
Saturday morning describing the fire situation as “extreme with frequent runs,
spot fires and group torching.”
Residential and commercial structures destroyed
The fire
destroyed 10 residential and commercial structures and damaged five more as of
Saturday morning, The Associated Press quoted a report by the Mercury News.
Caltrans reportedly shut down numerous roads, and Highway 140 between Carstens
Road and Alfred Road – blocking one of the main routes into Yosemite National
Park.
Daniel
Peterson, a spokesperson for the Sierra National Forest said hot weather and
bone dry vegetation caused by the worst drought in decades was fueling the
blaze.
“The fire is
moving quickly. This fire was throwing embers out in front of itself for up to
2 miles yesterday,” Patterson said, according to The Associated Press. “These
are exceptional fire conditions.”
1,700 residents to be evacuated over the deadly wildfire
Authorities
put about 1,700 residents in the area under mandatory evacuation orders Friday
night following the deadly blaze.
The fire
began on July 7th threatening more than 500 mature sequoias in the park’s
Mariposa Grove and the nearby community of Wawona, which has been evacuated.
The area in
the southern portion of Yosemite was closed to visitors but the rest of the
national was accessible.
A sprinkler
system was reportedly set up within the grove to maintain moisture. A 3,000-year-old
Grizzly Giant did not suffer severe damage