Blaze in Northern California destroys 30 homes, damages 30 others

REDDING, Calif. – Firefighters gained the upper hand Tuesday on a wildfire in Northern California that destroyed 30 homes and forced about 600 people out of their homes, fire officials said.

The Clover Fire broke out Monday near the rural community of Happy Valley in Shasta County and was quickly fanned by gusty winds, growing to 28 square kilometres. However, lighter winds Tuesday allowed firefighters to focus on corralling the blaze.

“The fire is not doing much and that is what we call very good news,” California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesman Mike Witesman said.

Officials said that at its peak, the flames spread at 200 hectares an hour.

Some residents were given just minutes to evacuate as the fire jumped roads and engulfed residences, the Record Searchlight of Redding reported.

Ty Romero, who lost his home, told the newspaper that he and his uncle quickly loaded a truck and fled as flames approached. They took two dogs but a third was missing.

“It wasn’t even 10 minutes,” he said. “I know a lot of the houses in the area burned.”

Along with the homes, 50 outbuildings were destroyed and another 30 structures, mostly homes, were damaged, Witesman said. About 300 homes remained threatened.

More than 1,100 firefighters were battling the blaze 240 kilometres north of Sacramento. Three of them suffered minor injuries, and a resident was treated for smoke inhalation.

The fire was 40 per cent contained. The cause was under investigation.

Gov. Jerry Brown secured a federal grant to help agencies pay for the cost of the Clover Fire.

Elsewhere, more than 3,000 firefighters were still battling the Rim Fire that has burned 1,036 square kilometres in and around Yosemite National Park. The cost of the effort has reportedly reached $100 million since it erupted on Aug. 17.

Authorities said the blaze was 80 per cent contained after being caused by a hunter’s campfire. It has destroyed nearly a dozen homes and almost 100 outbuildings.

Meanwhile, a fire burning in a San Francisco Bay Area wilderness park appeared to be under control.

Crews made progress overnight against the fire in Mount Diablo State Park in Contra Costa County, more than doubling containment and reducing the number of threatened homes to 75.