Abilene Reporter-News
MINERAL, Calif. — Twisted sheets of metal, the hulks of pickups and brick walls were all that was left of dozens of homes once sheltered by green pine and cedar trees in several Northern California communities that were the latest to feel the wrath of massive western wildfires.
Thousands of residents of the rural communities just outside Lassen Volcanic National Park were allowed to return home after being forced flee soon after the blaze was ignited by lightning Saturday. They surveyed the damaged Thursday as others in the region prepared to leave.
The Ponderosa Fire was 57 percent contained, with full containment expected early next week. But the blaze threatened 900 other homes Thursday as it burned a new front to the south. “All our efforts are focused on keeping the fire out of the park,” state fire spokesman Don Camp said Thursday.
Sixty-four homes and 20 other buildings have been destroyed, mostly in the Manton area, Camp said.
More than 2,500 firefighters were battling the wildfire, which grew to 44 square miles in the hills about 25 miles southeast of Redding.
As he monitored helicopters dropping retardant on the rim of the Battle Creek Canyon in nearby Mineral, CalFire Division Chief Scott Lindgren said Thursday the rugged, densely forested land has been challenging for his crews.
“The further east we go, the harder it is to stop this fire,” Lindgren said.
Bob Folsom, who works at an area hydroelectric facility, tended the gasoline generator that was keeping his refrigerator running while utility crews worked to replace power lines destroyed by the blaze when it roared through the area last weekend.
“I was ready for this day,” he said. “I try to be self-sufficient.”
Wildfires also continued burning elsewhere in the West. In Washington state, fire crews still hoped to fully contain a week-old wildfire that has destroyed 51 homes and 26 outbuildings and damaged at least six other homes, authorities said.
In central Idaho, firefighters started a burnout operation near the town of Featherville to deny an approaching wildfire the fuel it would need to reach hundreds of homes that were evacuated.
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