Firefighters Get Upper Hand on Wildfire in Central California; Others Still Raging

Firefighters on the rugged Central California coast Tuesday got the upper hand on a fast-spreading blaze that charred 2,600 acres of brittle chaparral and threatened dozens of homes, but huge fires were burning out of control in Alaska and smaller blazes were also out of control in Nevada, Utah and Yellowstone National Park.

Wildfires have blackened more than 700,000 acres in five Western states, with 54 blazes in Alaska responsible for most of the damage.

In the Los Padres National Forest near San Luis Obispo, bulldozers cut a mile-long path across a mountain ridge, and firefighters lit backfires in century-old stands of brush to try to contain the wildfire. About 650 firefighters from across the state and as far away as the Midwest struggled against the blaze in temperatures in the high 90s. One firefighter suffered a broken ankle and another smoke inhalation, fire spokesmen said.

Firefighters, aided by a seven-aircraft fleet of tankers and helicopters, hoped to contain the fire by Tuesday night and to have it under control today.

Blazes Contained

California Department of Forestry officials said two fires near Jackson, about 45 miles southeast of Sacramento, merged Tuesday but were contained. Another blaze in the area was contained Monday after blackening 53 acres.

Department spokesman Bob Heal said a home, a barn or garage containing a vehicle, and an outbuilding--all in different areas--were destroyed in the Jackson fire. He estimated damage at $200,000.

Meanwhile, a blaze near San Andreas in Calaveras County covered 400 acres and threatened the town of about 2,000 people, Forestry Department spokeswoman Lynn Auld said. About 250 firefighters and three planes dropping fire retardant contained the fire Tuesday. One firefighter sprained an ankle.

An army of more than 1,300 exhausted and frustrated Alaskan firefighters was battling lightning-sparked fires on 675,000 acres with containment nowhere in sight.

One 60-member fire crew working northeast of Huslia had to be picked up by helicopters and dropped on sand bars in the middle of the Koyukuk River--the second such incident in a week involving firefighters being forced into nearby water to escape flames, said Dave Liebersbach, a fire commander in Galena.

Exhausted Crews

Liebersbach, an 18-year veteran of Alaska firefighting, said crews were becoming exhausted in the marathon effort against what he called “megafires,” adding, “Mother nature is doing the controlling.”

Temperatures in the northern interior of Alaska had been in the 80s until they dropped Monday, but were expected to rise again with no rain in sight.

Officials at Yellowstone National Park monitored six fires covering about 11,000 acres near the park. In Yellowstone’s backcountry, campfire restrictions were imposed and some campsites were closed.

In northwestern Colorado, firefighters expected to contain brush-fueled blazes that burned more than 20,000 acres.