Associated Press
Children attending summer camps and others have been told to leave immediately as a wildfire burns in a wilderness area in south-central Washington.
The fire is burning about 80 miles west of Yakima within the Goat Rocks Wilderness. It was started by lightning and was reported Monday.
The Herald-Republic says about 400 children and employees at camps in the Clear Lake area were evacuated Tuesday.
The U.S. Forest Service has closed the White Pass and Clear Lake recreational areas because the fire is burning close to popular trails, campgrounds and homes. It has scorched about 30 acres.
District Ranger Kelly Lawrence says the closure is needed because fires burning across the U.S. West have exhausted resources and it’s been difficult to staff the Miriam Fire.
A firefighter runs while trying to save a home as a wildfire tears through Lakeport, California, on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
1,018 homes torched in California
Fire officials say a massive blaze in Northern California has torched 1,018 homes in and around the city of Redding.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said Wednesday that another 440 buildings including barns and warehouses have also been destroyed by the fire.
The huge Redding area blaze that has been burning for more than a week has displaced 38,000 from their homes and killed six people. Redding Police on Tuesday asked for help from the public locating four people who are still missing.
Thousands of people were allowed to return to their homes this week but the blaze continues to burn and has scorched 180 square miles. It is 35 percent contained.
The wildfire is now the seventh most destructive wildfire in California history.
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