400 Fight Huge Fire in Alaskan Forest
About 400 firefighters struggled Saturday to control a 15,000-acre fire that has blackened forest land in the Tanana Valley southeast of Fairbanks and has forced about 150 people from their homes.
“At this point, they’re catching up with it,” said Sue Swartz of the Bureau of Land Management’s Alaska Fire Service. “It’s still a danger. If the winds come up, it could be a real problem.”
The blaze started Friday about five miles east of Donnelly Dome, about 20 miles southeast of Delta Junction, and wind gusts up to 35 m.p.h. whipped the fire out of control, she said.
No homes or private properties have been damaged, Swartz said, and no injuries have been reported.
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