Wildfires flare as western US grapples with heat wave and drought

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Firefighters were working in extreme temperatures across the western United States and battling to contain wildfires, the largest in California and Oregon, as another heat wave swept the region, straining power grids.

The biggest wildfire of the year in California – the Beckworth Complex – was raging along the Nevada state line and burning about 134 square miles (348 square kilometers) as state regulators voluntarily asked consumers to “conserve as much electricity as possible” to avoid any outages starting after Monday afternoon.

In Oregon, the Bootleg Fire exploded to 224 square miles (580 square kilometers) as it rushed through heavy woods in Fremont-Winema National Forest, near the town of Klamath County in the Sprague River. Fire service was disrupted on three transmission lines that provide up to 5,500 megawatts of electricity to neighboring California.

A bushfire in southeastern Washington has grown to nearly 60 square miles while in Idaho, Governor Brad Little mobilized the National Guard to help fight fires that broke out after thunderstorms swept the drought-stricken area.

The fires come as the West is in the midst of a second extreme heat wave in a few weeks, and as the entire region suffers from one of the worst droughts in recent history. California extreme heat warnings were finally expected to expire Monday night.

On Sunday, firefighters working in temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) were able to gain some ground at the Beckwourth complex, doubling the containment to 20%.

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 back at the foot of the mountain, the fires are still burning,” said Briari.

A new fire broke out Sunday afternoon in the Sierra Nevada south of Yosemite National Park and by evening covered more than 6 square miles (15.5 square kilometers), leading to evacuations in areas of two counties. Containment was only 5% but the highway to the park’s southern entrance remained open early Monday.

In Arizona, a small plane crashed Saturday during a bushfire survey in rural Mojave County, killing both crew members.

A Beech C-90 was assisting in reconnaissance over the lightning-triggered Cedar Basin Fire, near the small community of Wikieup northwest of Phoenix.

Officials on Sunday identified the victims as Tactical Air Group Superintendent Jeff Pechora, 62, a retired Tucson-area firefighter who worked in the Coronado National Forest, and Matthew Miller, 48, a pilot with Falcon Executive Aviation contracted by the US Forest Service. . . The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident.

A wildfire in southeastern Washington burned nearly 60 square miles (155 square kilometers) as it blackened grass and wood as it moved into the Umatilla National Forest.

In Idaho, Governor Brad Little declared a wildfire emergency Friday and mobilized the state’s National Guard to help fight fires that broke out after thunderstorms swept through the drought-stricken region.

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