Fire in Shasta County prompts mandatory evacuations as crews make progress
Cal Fire personnel in Shasta County began their fight against a blaze that prompted mandatory evacuation orders Friday as crews in Southern California worked to finish off the Jim fire.
The Flanagan fire started just after 10:30 a.m. near the city of Shasta Lake, about 10 miles north of Redding.
The blaze was first reported at 5 acres in size, when 80 personnel were assigned to the incident, the Shasta-Trinity Unit of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said on Twitter.
Authorities have confirmed that Marine engineers from Camp Pendleton were detonating explosives in the forest around the time of the fire’s ignition.
The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office issued mandatory evacuation orders for residents on Walker Mine Road, west of Lake Boulevard, which runs north-south.
Cal Fire officials did not say how many residents were affected by the orders.
By 5 p.m., the fire had grown to 40 acres and was 20% contained with evacuation orders still in place, said Flanagan incident public information officer Jas Shaw.
“They are making really good progress,” Shaw said.
Crews were facing steep and rugged terrain and wind gusts of 10 miles per hour, Shaw said.
The fire’s cause was not yet known.
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