The Beckworth compound fire in the Sierra explodes to nearly 84,000 acres, the largest wildfire in California

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SAN FRANCISCO – Firefighters working in sweltering weather struggled to contain northern California wildfires that continued to grow on Sunday and forced the temporary closure of a major highway, one of several large fires burning across the western United States amid another record-breaking heat wave It led to tension. electricity networks.

In Arizona, two firefighters were killed Saturday after the plane they were traveling in crashed during a survey of a small bushfire in rural Mojave County. A Beech C-90 was helping with reconnaissance over the lightning-triggered Cedar Basin Fire, near the small Wikieup community, when it went down at noon.

The only two firefighters were on board. Officials identified one of them as Jeff Pechora, a retired Tucson fire chief who worked with the US Forest Service. The other’s name is withheld until relatives are notified. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident.

In California, officials have asked all residents to quickly reduce energy consumption after a major wildfire in southern Oregon knocked out interstate power lines, preventing up to 5,500 megawatts of electricity from flowing south into the state.

RELATED: The pace of California wildfires in 2021 long before disastrous 2020

The California Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s power grid, said Saturday that the Bootleg fire shut down three transmission lines, straining the electricity supply as temperatures soared in the area.

“The Bootleg Fire has significant growth potential today,” the National Weather Service in Medford, Oregon, wrote on Twitter on Sunday.

Driven by strong winds, the fire exploded to 224 square miles as it rushed through heavy woods in Oregon’s Fremont-Winema National Forest, near the county town of Klamath in the Sprague River.

To the southeast, the biggest wildfire of the year was in California, raging near the border with Nevada. The Compound Bikwart Fire – a combination of two fires caused by lightning burning 45 miles north of Lake Tahoe – showed no sign of slowing its rush northeast of the Sierra Nevada forest after doubling in size between Friday and Saturday.

Late Saturday, flames jumped $395, which shut down near the small town of Doyle in Lassen County, California. Lanes reopened on Sunday, and officials urged motorists to exercise caution and continue moving along the main north-south road where the fires are still burning.

“Don’t stop and take pictures,” said Fire Chief Jake Cagle. “It will hamper our operations if you stop and look at what’s going on.”

Cagle said the hulls had burned in Doyle, but he didn’t have an exact number. Bob Bree, who runs Buck Inn in the town of about 600 people, said he saw at least six homes destroyed after Saturday’s eruption. Fires raged on Sunday in and around Doyle, but he feared that some remote farm properties were still at risk.

“It seems that the worst is over in the city, but the fires are still burning on the mountainside. I’m not sure what will happen if the winds change direction,” Baryari said. Cagle noted that erratic winds were a concern for firefighters, with gusts of up to 20 mph (32 km/h) expected.

Video: How to prepare for a wildfire evacuation

The fire, which was only 9% contained, rose to 131 square miles, or more than 83,000 acres. Temperatures in the area may reach 100 degrees again on Sunday.

It was one of several fires threatening homes across western states that were expected to see triple-digit heat over the weekend as high pressure blankets the area.

Death Valley in southeastern California’s Mojave Desert reached 128 degrees Fahrenheit Saturday, according to a National Weather Service reading in Furnace Creek. The shockingly high temperature was actually lower than the day before, when the site reached 130 F (54 C).

Death Valley also recorded a 130-degree day in August last year. If this reading and Friday’s reading are confirmed by experts as accurate, it would be the highest altitudes recorded there since July 1913, when the Furnace Creek Desert reached 134 F (57 C), which is the highest temperature ever measured on Earth.

The National Weather Service has warned that dangerous conditions could cause heat-related illnesses.

Palm Springs in Southern California also hit a record high of 120 F on Saturday, while Las Vegas hit an all-time high of 117 F

NV Energy, Nevada’s largest energy provider, is also urging customers to save electricity on Saturday and Sunday evenings due to the heat wave and wildfires affecting transmission lines across the region.

In Idaho, Governor Brad Little mobilized the state’s National Guard to help fight fires that broke out after thunderstorms swept through the drought-stricken area.

Copyright © 2021 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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