Firefighters Battle Blaze Near Yosemite
More than 400 firefighters worked in 100-degree weather Tuesday to halt a stubborn fire on 1,240 acres of brush and timber in the Stanislaus National Forest.
With the winds calm, the flames were 40% contained by Tuesday afternoon, said forest spokesman Richard Wisehart. But the fire burst through eastern containment lines, raising new fears.
“I would say we are pretty concerned now about the fire getting larger,” Wisehart said.
The blaze began Monday in steep, brushy terrain near California 120, about eight miles west of Yosemite National Park.
Firefighters focused on keeping the flames away from the wooded area around the main fork of the Tuolumne River. The fire forced closure of the highway about four miles east of Groveland, effectively shutting down that entrance to Yosemite for the day.
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