Associated Press
SHASTA-TRINITY NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. — A roaring wildfire that has shut down a stretch of a major interstate in a rural area near the California-Oregon border has nearly doubled in size overnight.
The blaze in California’s Shasta-Trinity National Forest was burning out of control Saturday with crews scrambling to prevent it from reaching mountain communities.
The fire has chewed through 58 square miles (150 square kilometers) of timber since Wednesday.
Authorities said Friday that a 45-mile (72-kilometer) section of Interstate 5 would remain closed at least until Sunday.
The highway runs from the U.S.-Mexico border to Canada.
The fire destroyed thousands of trees that could fall onto the highway.
Crews near California’s border with Nevada gained minimal containment of another wildfire that closed highways on the edge of the Sierra Nevada.
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